THE  WiE>RRERANj>WORK  SERIES 


iMMiM##M«WM«iiiri^**##MM«Miriwp 


2.^.28: 


LIBRARY  OF  THE  THEOLOGICAL  SEMINARY 

PRINCETON,    N.    J. 
PRESENTED    BY 

Jjcn.    cA     Llnris-ric^n     Lcn. 

BV  1547  .H3  1922  cTl^ 
Harris,  Hugh  Henry. 
Leaders  of  youth 


THE  WORKER  AND  WORK  SERIES 

THE  BEGINNERS'  WORKER  AND  WORK.  Frederica  Beard 

THE  PRIMARY  WORKER  AND  WORK.  Marion  Thomas 

THE  JUNIOR  WORKER  AND  WORK.  Josephine  L.  Baldwin 

LEADERS  OF  YOUTH  (Intermediates  and  Seniors).  Hugh  H.Harris 

LEADERS  OF  YOUNG  PEOPLE.  Frank  Wade  Smith 

THE  ADULT  WORKER  AND  WORK.       Wade  Crawford  Barclay 

THE  SUPERINTENDENT.  Frank  L.  Brown 

THE  WORKER  AND  HIS  CHURCH.  Eric  M.  North 

THE  WORKER  AND  HIS  BIBLE. 

Frederick  C.  Eiselen  and  Wade  Crawford  Barclay 


The  Worker  and  Work  Series 

HENRY  H.  MEYER,  Editor 


Leaders  of  Youth 

The  Intermediate-Senior  Worker  and 
By 


HUGH  HENRy^HARBSl^  FEB  9  - 


THE  METHODIST  BOOK  CONCERN 

NEW  YORK  CINCINNATI 


Copyright,  1922,  by 
HUGH  HENRY  HARRIS 


Priuted  in  the  United  States  of  America 


First  Edition  Printed  February,  1922 
Reprinted  June,  1923;  March,  1925;  February,  1927 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

The  Religious  Education  of  Youth 7 

Foreword : 9 

PART  I 

A  STUDY  OF  THE  INTERMEDIATE- 
SENIOR 

I.     The  Intermediate  and  His  World 13 

II.     The  Senior  and  His  World 23 

III.  The  Significance  of  Sex   Development 34 

IV.  Individual   Differences 46 

V.     Group  Differences 53 

VI.    God  in  the  Life  of  Youth 62 

VII.     Youth  and  the  Church 72 

PART  II 

MEANS  FOR  DEVELOPING  THE  INTER- 
MEDIATE-SENIOR 

VIII.    The  Worker's  Task 85 

IX.     Departmental  Organization 95 

X.     Outfitting  the  Department 104 

XL     Character  through  Worship 113 

XII.     Building   Programs  of  Worship 124 

XIIL     Story-Telling 133 

XIV.     Character  through  Recreation 141 

XV.     Character  through  Service 154 

XVI.     In  Quest  of  Friends 166 

XVII.    The  Lure  of  Books 174 

5 


6  CONTENTS 

PART  III 
INSTRUCTING  THE  INTERMEDIATE-SENIOR 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

XVIII.  Lesson  Materials  for  Intermediates 187 

XIX.  Lesson  Materials  for  Seniors 196 

XX.  Getting  Expression  from  the  Class 204 

XXI.  How  TO  Get  the   Pupils  to  Study 213 

XXII.  Adolescent  Doubts  and  Questions 220 

XXIII.  Helping  Pupils  Decide  Their  Future 227 

XXIV.  Developing  and  Training  Leadership 233 


THE   RELIGIOUS   EDUCATION   OF  YOUTH 

Efficiency  in  religious  education  through  the  Sunday 
school  has  developed  upward  from  the  lower  grades.  Most 
of  our  early  American  Sunday  schools  were  "Infant 
Schools,"  so  called.  That  is,  their  membership  was  com- 
posed principally  of  the  younger  children.  The  evan- 
gelical churches  have  been  seriously  engaged  for  a  longer 
time  at  the  task  of  religious  education  of  children  than 
of  older  boys  and  girls.  As  a  result  more  real  progress 
has  been  made  and  a  higher  degree  of  efficiency  attained. 
Progress  in  secular  education,  also,  during  the  past  century 
has  been  most  marked  in  the  elementary  grades.  The 
whole  development  of  the  kindergarten  in  America  has 
taken  place  within  the  past  seventy-five  years,  and  its  influ- 
ence upon  elementary  education  has  been  revolutionary. 
This  development  has  deeply  influenced  both  the  ideals  and 
the  practice  of  religious  nurture  in  religious  schools. 

Recent  years  have  witnessed  a  marked  awakening  to  the 
importance  of  the  period  of  youth  in  religious  education. 
The  scientific  study  of  adolescence  has  contributed  to  this 
interest.  Accompanying  the  increased  appreciation  of  the 
significance  of  adolescence  for  religion  has  come  the  real- 
ization of  how  slight  a  measure  of  success  has  accom- 
panied the  work  of  the  Sunday  school  with  boys  and  girls. 
The  realization  of  the  terrific  losses  in  membership  during 
the  early  teens  has  come  as  an  accusing  conscience,  causing 
religious  workers  everywhere  to  inquire  the  explanation, 
to  question  prevailing  methods  of  administration  and  of 
instruction,  and  to  seek  the  better  way. 

One  of  the  first  results  of  this  inquiry  has  been  the  de- 
velopment of  specialized  method.  Formerly  all  Sunday 
schools  included  all  members  of  the  school  above  the  ele- 
mentary grades  in  one  mass  assembly.    Within  a  few  years 

7 


8  THE  RELIGIOUS  EDUCATION  OF  YOUTH 

the  realization  has  become  almost  universal  among  progres- 
sive Sunday-school  workers  that  just  as  elementary  teachers 
recognize  clearly  defined  groups  within  the  field  of  child- 
hood, with  corresponding  Beginners',  Primary,  and  Junior 
Departments,  so  in  dealing  with  adolescents  it  is  necessary 
to  differentiate  between  the  interests  and  needs  of  boys 
and  girls  in  early  youth,  those  in  middle  youth,  and  those 
in  later  youth.  This  has  led  in  our  larger  and  better 
equipped  schools  to  separate  departments  for  Intermediates 
(12,  13,  14  years).  Seniors  (15,  16,  17  years),  and  Young 
People    (18-24  years). 

The  majority  of  our  Protestant  Sunday  schools  have  a 
comparatively  small  membership;  a  large  number  enroll- 
ing less  than  two  hundred  pupils;  more  than  one  half,  in 
all  probability,  less  than  one  hundred.  For  these  smaller 
schools,  most  of  them  with  inadequate  equipment,  a  com- 
pletely departmentalized  school  is  an  impossibility.  They 
must  combine  certain  groups  of  pupils.  For  many,  one 
such  combination  is  represented  by  bringing  together  the 
pupils  of  early  and  middle  youth  into  an  Intermediate- 
Senior  (or  Teen-Age)  Department.  It  is  for  the  officers 
and  teachers  in  such  schools  that  Leaders  of  Youth  has 
been  written. 

The  writer,  Dr.  Hugh  Henry  Harris,  is  professor  of  reli- 
gious education  in  Emory  University,  Atlanta,  Georgia. 
For  years  as  student,  pastor,  director  of  religious  educa- 
tion, and  professor  he  has  both  studied  boys  and  girls  and 
worked  with  them.  This  book  therefore  comes  out  of  thor- 
ough investigation  and  ripe  experience.  We  are  confident 
that  both  as  a  manual  for  reading  and  as  a  textbook  for 
study  it  will  be  found  to  be  an  effective  means  of  increas- 
ing efficiency  in  this  most  important  task  of  religious  edu- 
cation of  boys  and  girls  in  the  trying,  crucial  years  of  early 
youth. — The  Editors. 


FOREWORD 

The  reader  will  discover  that  this  handbook  is  divided 
into  three  parts.  It  is  intended  that  Part  I  should  furnish 
a  sufficient  foundation  in  the  psychology  of  adolescence  to 
enable  the  worker  with  intermediates  or  with  seniors  to 
understand  the  inner  life  of  the  pupils  of  his  department. 
A  thorough  mastery  at  this  point  will  give  intelligent  direc- 
tion to  his  future  thought  and  work. 

For  the  one,  however,  who  wishes  to  plunge  at  once  into 
plans  and  programs,  Part  II  forms  a  satisfactory  beginning. 
He  will  here  find  a  discussion  of  the  organization  and 
equipment  of  the  department  and  directions  for  worship, 
recreation,  and  service  which  will  guide  him  in  the  actual 
conduct  of  his  class  or  department. 

If,  instead,  the  reader's  greatest  immediate  need  is  to 
know  how  to  handle  the  lesson  material  in  the  class,  it  is 
suggested  that  he  turn  at  once  to  Part  III.  Here  will  be 
found  no  tricks  but  a  careful  study  of  the  graded  lessons 
for  these  students,  together  with  explanations  of  how  to 
get  the  most  out  of  the  lesson  period. 

As  efficient  practice  is  based  on  sound  theory  it  is  urged 
upon  all  who  would  master  the  technique  of  intermediate- 
senior  work  to  read  carefully  Part  I  before  perusing  the 
remainder  of  the  book. 

Hugh  Henry  Harris. 
Emory  University,  Georgia. 

January,  1922. 


PART   I 
A  STUDY  OF  THE   INTERMEDIATE-SENIOR 


CHAPTER    I 
THE  INTERMEDIATE   AND   HIS  WORLD 

Have  you  ever  asked  yourself  what  the  boys  and  girls  of 
the  Intermediate  Department  of  the  Sunday  school  do  with 
their  time,  how  they  spend  the  twenty-four  hours  of  the 
day?  Have  you  ever  taken  thought  to  watch  their  pur- 
suits in  the  hope  of  gaining  some  better  knowledge  of 
their  lives?  Without  such  knowledge  one's  ideas  of  these 
pupils  are  likely  to  be  hazy,  and  the  real  life  of  the  boy 
or  the  girl  to  be  looked  upon  as  trivial  and  unimportant 
or  clothed  with  affectation  and  fantasy,  giving  a  sense  of 
unreality.  But  be  assured,  the  lives  of  these  our  young 
friends  are  very  real — quite  as  real  and  vital  to  them  as 
are  ours  to  us.  To  know  and  to  aid  them  we  must  ascertain 
what  they  do,  what  they  like,  how  they  change  as  the  years 
advance,  and  we  must  see  life  as  they  see  it. 

1.  The  intermediate  and  the  school.  A  considerable 
part  of  the  life  of  youth  up  to  the  fifteenth  year  is  lived 
in  public  or  private  schools.  Five  to  six  hours  of  each  day 
are  spent  in  the  seventh  or  eighth  grade  or  in  the  first 
or  second  year  of  high  school.  Studying  books,  reciting 
lessons,  working  in  the  laboratory,  doing  manual  work, 
learning  languages,  engage  their  time.  This  life  under  dis- 
cipline they  accept  with  every  degree  of  interest  from  posi- 
tive revolt  and  compulsion  through  unemotional  but  ac- 
cepted tradition  and  custom  up  to  eager,  joyous,  and 
enthusiastic  endeavor.  The  major  part,  likely,  falls  into 
the  middle  class  just  mentioned,  accepting  school  with  its 
tasks  and  its  fellowship  quite  as  a  matter  of  fact. 

During  these  years  some  begin  to  take  a  forward  look 
either  toward  high  school  or  toward  release  from  irksome 
school   duties.     Certainly   we   can   say   that   entrance   into 

13 


14  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

high  school  marks  a  new  turn  in  the  lives  of  the  young 
quite  as  truly  as  leaving  school  for  business  or  for  home 
tasks.  As  the  average  age  for  entering  high  school  lies 
between  fourteen  and  one-half  and  fifteen  years,  it  is  seen 
that  this  new  life  is  entered  upon  during  the  very  years 
under  discussion.  School  is  central  in  the  lives  of  these 
pupils,  first,  because  of  its  large  time  demand,  and,  secondly, 
because  of  its  insistence  upon  certain  well-defined  dis- 
ciplines. 

For,  after  all — or,  perhaps,  we  should  say  best  of  all — 
the  school  is  not  simply  an  Institution  of  instruction;  it  is 
a  social  colony,  with  well-organized  life,  with  its  customs 
and  conventions,  with  the  give-and-take  that  social  living 
always  means.  Habits  are  being  formed,  and  the  experi- 
ences of  later  life  are  being  given  a  background;  ideals  are 
being  createa  and  attitudes  established.  The  school  is  not 
a  knowledge  factory,  i3ut  democracy's  plan  for  creating  citi- 
zens, equipped  to  live  in  Llie  social  complex  of  a  self-govern- 
ing people.  In  so  far  as  the  school  fulfills  this,  its  chief 
function,  the  world  of  the  school  is  the  pupil's  chief  world. 

2.  The  leisure  time  of  the  intermediates.  If  we  turn 
from  the  school  hours  and  inquire  what  is  done  with  the 
remaining  time  of  each  day,  we  soon  discover  some  of  the 
vital  interests  of  these  pupils.  For,  after  all,  the  occupa- 
tions we  follow  in  our  leisure  time  indicate  quite  truly 
our  real  desires  and  our  true  purposes.  From  a  consider- 
able list  of  reports  upon  the  use  of  time  among  boys  anr« 
girls  of  this  age  group  the  following  typical  cases  present 
some  concrete  facts: 

Boy,  fifteen. — Playing  ball,  riding  his  bicycle,  and  helping 
in  a  grocery  store;  delivers  newspapers  each  afternoon; 
works  most  of  Saturday. 

Boy,  thirteen. — Spare  hours  spent  playing  games,  going 
to  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association,  taking  walks, 
swimming;  goes  to  "movies"  occasionally;  is  building  a 
clubhouse;  likes  to  read  some. 

Girl,  thirteen. — "Helping  mother,"  with  many  little  house- 


THE  INTERMEDIATE  AND  HIS  WORLD  15 

hold  duties  and  learning  to  cook;  working  with  her  father 
in  the  garden,  where  she  has  a  small  plot;  plays  volleyball, 
roller  skates,  rides  bicycle,  plays  house,  and  sews  for  a 
family  of  dolls  of  which  she  is  still  fond;  often  reads  books 
with  her  girl  friends;  takes  piano  lessons  and  spends  a 
portion  of  her  time  in  practice;  loves  to  read  stories,  espe- 
cially about  rich  little  girls,  but  occasionally  likes  thrilling 
boy's  stories. 

Girl,  thirteen. — Music  lesson  one  hour  a  day ;  uses  extra 
hours  studying,  visiting,  doing  some  fancy  work,  reading; 
goes  to  "movies"  once  or  twice  a  month. 

Boy,  thirteen. — This  boy  in  his  spare  time  plays,  does 
chores  in  the  home,  and  sometimes  attends  "movies."  His 
chief  interests  are  athletics,  especially  football,  manual 
work,  hunting  and  fishing,  and  the  "movies."  He  is  very 
fond  of  reading  short  wild-west  stories  or  stories  that  have 
plenty  of  action,  adventure,  and  daring.  His  delight  knows 
no  bounds  when  he  has  a  gun  on  his  shoulder  and  goes 
looking  for  rabbits  or  birds  to  shoot. 

Boy,  twelve. — Most  of  the  hours  out  of  school  are  spent 
playing  games  with  associates.  He  joined  the  Scouts  re- 
cently and  for  a  time  was  perfectly  carried  away  with  the 
idea  of  being  a  Scout,  especially  during  the  time  the  Scout- 
master took  time  for  week-end  outings  and  hikes.  He  is 
much  interested  in  athletics  and  likes  to  wrestle  and  box. 
He  is  also  fond  of  reading  Boy  Scout  stories  and  of  motion 
pictures  along  the  same  line.  He  is  beginning  to  resent 
too  close  watch  over  what  he  does  and  where  he  goes  and 
is  much  more  susceptible  to  persuasion  than  to  direct 
command. 

Girl,  fifteen. — Hours  out  of  school  are  spent  in  reading 
current  fiction  and  the  classics,  studying  (she  wants  to 
become  a  college  professor),  playing  tennis,  visiting,  at- 
tending "movies,"  dancing. 

Girl,  fifteen. — Averages  two  hours  study  each  night,  cro- 
chets and  embroiders  just  before  the  fair  and  Christmas, 
takes  care  of  her  room,  makes  cakes,  and  occasionally  helps 


16  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

her  mother  a  little.  Her  play  life  consists  in  making  candy, 
playing  the  piano,  playing  cards,  dancing,  skating,  swim- 
ming, tennis,  hikes,  "movies,"  in  which  she  is  greatly  inter- 
ested;  reading,  very  little. 

Girl,  twelve  and  one  half. — Rises  somewhere  between  six 
thirty  and  seven  o'clock;  after  breakfast  runs  an  errand; 
puts  her  room  in  order  or  studies  until  school  time.  After 
school  hours  she  goes  out  for  a  romp  or  skates,  plays 
football  or  does  anything  that  is  like  a  tomboy — runs, 
climbs,  or  races  around  the  house  like  a  boy.  Then  she 
studies  a  while  or  helps  do  up  the  work.  She  will  read 
if  the  weather  is  bad.  Doesn't  like  to  be  alone  but  is  satis- 
fied if  only  a  baby  or  cat  is  with  her  for  company.  She 
likes  to  cook  better  than  anything  else;  cares  very  little 
for  the  "movies"  and  goes  seldom;  is  apt  to  criticize 
things  seen  or  heard;  likes  picnics  and  socials.  She  is 
never  idle  if  there  is  anything  she  can  do. 

Boy,  thirteen. — Spare  time  spent  playing  games,  espe- 
cially team  play,  going  walking  through  the  woods  in  an 
exploring  and  adventurous  frame  of  mind,  reading  stories 
of  adventure,  experimenting  in  chemistry  and  mechanics 
and  preparing  school  assignments.  His  chief  interest  is  in 
chemistry  since  he  has  a  chemical  set.  His  older  brother 
is  interested  in  chemistry  at  high  school  and  assists  him 
in  his  experiments.  He  seems  to  admire  his  older  brother 
very  much;   is  very  fond  of  reading  and  of  the  "movies." 

These  reports  are  from  boys  and  girls  living  in  a  city  of 
thirty-one  thousand  population,  and  all  are  in  Sunday 
schools.  They  are  fairly  typical  reports  in  that  the  city  is 
small  enough  to  permit  real  approach  to  nature  in  the 
near-by  woods  and  fields,  yet  has  the  city  flavor  in  the 
organized  life  of  the  school.  Scouts  and  Camp  Fire  Girls, 
Young  Men's  and  Young  Women's  Christian  Associations, 
Boys'  and  Girls'  Departments. 

It  should  be  noted,  however,  that  the  rural  or  farm  boy 
and  girl  are  not  here;  nor  are  the  Catholic  or  Jewish  ele- 
ments of  the  population  represented.     Th^  cases  are  suf- 


THE  INTERMEDIATE  AND  HIS  WORLD  17 

ficient,  nevertheless,  to  suggest  what  are  the  interests  of 
those  with  whom  we  deal  in  our  Sunday  schools  and  indi- 
cate with  clearness  how  the  spare  hours  are  passed.^ 

It  is  obvious  that  the  unused  time  is  spent  by  boy  and 
girl  alike  in  seeking  fun,  in  extending  knowledge,  in  gain- 
ing expertness  and  skill,  or  in  finding  emotional  satisfac- 
tion. Nerves,  muscles,  and  brain  are  never  idle  during 
the  waking  hoars,  but  are  working  incessantly  to  satisfy 
the  craving  for  life  and  more  of  life.  Undirected  by  home 
ideals  or  group  organization,  these  hours  are  open  for  all 
kinds  of  unfortunate  experiments.  On  the  contrary,  under 
the  stimulation  of  sympathetic  home  environment  or  of 
group  leadership,  they  become  some  of  the  richest  because 
some  of  the  most  original  experiences  of  life.  In  the 
give-and-take  of  group  play,  in  the  experiment  of  chemis- 
try or  of  construction,  in  the  widening  knowledge  and  prac- 
tice of  woodcraft,  in  voluntary  reading — sought  because  it 
satisfies  some  particular  desire  of  the  hour — the  boys  and 
the  girls  are  building  up  bone  and  muscle,  gaining  coordina- 
tion of  brain  and  hand,  and  learning  to  live  a  self-directed, 
self-controlled  life. 

3.  The  many-sided  interests.  For  the  worker  with 
intermediates  this  information  as  to  his  pupil's  world 
should  discover  the  highly  complex  forces  that  are  at  work 
making  the  moral  and  religious  character  that  is  develop- 
ing under  his  very  eyes.  It  indicates  that  we  are,  in  our 
Sunday-school  classes,  touching  at  a  single  point  only  or, 
at  most,  at  a  few  points  the  stream  of  impressions,  the 
many-motived  life  forces  that  are  contributing  to  the 
emergence  of  a  personality.  Does  it  not  indicate  that  our 
task  is  a  larger  one  than  we  are  accustomed  to  think? 
Must  we  not  in  some  fashion  get  into  the  whole  current 
of  this  boy's,  this  girl's  life  so  as  to  permeate  the  whole 
with  religious  significance?  Can  we  capture  the  youth's 
ideals,   stimulate   his   emotions,   and    help    him   wisely   to 

1 A  still  wider  inquiry  is  found  in  the  Cleveland  survey,  which  will  supply 
some  of  the  elements  lacking  in  the  above  records. 


18  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

choose  his  standards  unless  we  become,  not  merely  his 
instructor,  but  genuinely  his  comrade,  his  confederate  in 
all  the  enterprises  of  his  life — his  school  and  studies,  his 
work  and  play,  his  building  and  experimenting,  his  reading 
and  his  "movie"  craze?  Only  as  we  learn  to  know  his 
inner  needs  and  desires  and  participate  in  his  victories,  his 
defeats,  his  problems,  and  his  longings  can  we  become  in 
any  true  sense  his  spiritual  leaders. 

4.  Physical  growth.  Look  now  at  the  boy  and  the  girl 
themselves,  at  their  bodies  and  their  minds,  as,  at  about 
the  twelfth  year,  they  pass  from  childhood  into  ado- 
lescence. 

In  so  far  as  the  child  is  still  a  school  child,  his  life 
appears  little  different  in  its  outward  manifestations  from 
that  of  the  boys  and  girls  whose  places  have  been  made 
vacant  by  promotion.  Yet  is  life  just  the  same?  Is  he 
the  same  boy,  is  she  the  same  girl  who  only  a  few  days 
ago  sat  in  the  lower  grades?  Is  the  outlook  upon  life 
affected  by  the  twelfth  birthday  and  by  the  subsequent 
development  in  bodily  growth,  in  intellectual  quickening,  in 
social  expansion,  and  in  inner  emotional  upheaval? 

Despite  individual  differences  certain  clearly  marked 
changes  are  taking  place  which  we  must  observe.  For 
twelve  years  nature  has  been  busy  maturing  a  boy  or  a 
girl.  With  decreasing  rapidity  the  body  has  gone  on  en- 
larging itself  by  multiplication  of  cells.  At  first,  with 
astonishing  quickness,  the  baby  has  grown  into  the  stature 
of  the  child.  Then  a  pause  has  come  when,  slowly  but 
surely,  the  child  has  gone  on  building  up  bone  and  muscle, 
until  at  twelve  the  boy  has  reached  a  height  of  about 
fifty-five  inches,  while  his  sister  at  the  same  age  has 
attained  a  height  of  about  fifty-six  inches.  But  now  these 
children,  to  play  their  part  in  the  larger  drama  of  life, 
begin  to  grow  with  amazing  rapidity,  to  shoot  up  and  to 
thicken  out  so  as  to  approximate  the  proportions  nec- 
essary to  adult  life.  By  fifteen  the  boys  have  attained 
92  per  cent  of  their  adult  height  and  72  per  cent  of  their 


THE  INTERMEDIATE  AND  HIS  WORLD  19 

weight;  at  the  same  age  the  girls  have  reached  97  per 
cent  of  their  height  and  90  per  cent  of  their  mature 
weight. 

This  means  that  bone  and  muscle  have  expanded  suffi- 
ciently to  give  the  youth  new  and  hitherto  unknown  pro- 
portions. When  we  recall  that  between  nine  and  twelve 
both  boys  and  girls  have  reached  a  comparatively  stabilized 
condition — a  condition  in  which  balance  and  poise  pre- 
dominate, when  eye  and  ear,  hand  and  foot,  work  together 
harmoniously  because  during  twelve  years  they  have  slowly 
acquired  coordination — and  then  think  how  the  newly 
attained  and  entirely  unpracticed  physical  expansion  throws 
coordination  out  of  balance,  we  need  not  be  surprised  that 
awkwardness,  lack  of  grace,  and  self-consciousness  manifest 
themselves. 

But  bodily  expansion  is,  after  all,  not  the  whole  of  the 
story.  Early,  in  the  middle,  or  late  in  this  period  the  gen- 
erative organs  begin  to  grow  toward  adult  size  and  get 
ready  to  function.  Pubic  hair  appears,  indicative  of  adult- 
hood, and  restiveness  becomes  manifest.  All  the  bodily 
growth  just  described,  as  truly  as  sex  development,  has  been 
part  of  nature's  program  to  bring  the  child  to  full  maturity. 
Shoulders  broaden,  hips  expand,  lungs  increase  in  capacity, 
and  the  heart,  to  supply  all  this  enlarged  mechanism  with 
abundance  of  blood,  works  overtime,  enlarging  itself  by 
its  own  exertions.  With  boys  the  larynx  grows,  and  the 
vocal  cords  thicken,  changing  the  voice  pitch  to  deep 
masculine  tones.  In  the  intervening  stage  of  change  chaos 
appears  in  the  vocal  range,  adding  to  the  self-consciousness 
of  the  lad. 

The  body-building  process  is  not  complete  by  fifteen,  but, 
like  a  new  house,  the  framework  is  pushed  up  rapidly,  and 
the  outlines  of  the  new  structure  are  soon  acquired.  In  the 
three  years  we  are  considering  the  boy  leaves  behind  for- 
ever his  boyhood,  and  the  girl  her  girlhood.  They  have 
been  furnished  with  a  new  body,  with  a  hitherto  unknown 
instinct,  and  must  learn  again  to  coordinate  the  new  bodily 


20  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

mechanism.  If  we  adults  in  the  next  three  years  should 
add  from  six  to  twelve  inches  to  our  stature,  if  we  should 
suddenly  find  ourselves  possessed  of  an  entirely  new  in- 
stinct seeking  expression,  if  we  should  find  our  voices 
sliding  about  in  spite  of  our  noblest  efforts,  and  if  we  dis- 
covered that  these  new  experiences  had  thrown  us  out  of 
balance,  giving  us  the  task  of  gaining  a  fresh  mastery  over 
our  bodies  and  our  minds,  perchance  we  should  better 
appreciate  the  position  of  the  intermediates.  We  should 
be  quite  as  awkward,  quite  as  self-conscious,  and,  by  those 
who  had  gone  so  far  past  the  experience  as  to  forget  it,  not 
less  difficult  to  understand. 

5.  Mental  and  social  development.  We  have  not  yet 
fully  analyzed  the  situation.  We  have  been  thinking  largely 
in  terms  of  bodily  growth  and  of  the  consequent  reaction 
of  the  child  to  these  new  bodily  experiences.  But  some- 
thing has  been  going  on  within — something  besides  rapid 
cell  development.  Keeping  pace  with  this  physical  expan- 
sion are  a  mental  and  a  social  development  no  less  impor- 
tant. The  enlarged  curriculum  of  the  schools  is  possible 
only  because  of  the  new  mental  powers.  The  days  of  the 
limited  intellectual  capacity  are  superseded  by  an  era  of 
mental  awakening.  Association  of  ideas  with  each  other 
is  more  rapidly  made,  and  logical  processes  can  be  car- 
ried out  more  readily.  Imagination  takes  new  direction. 
The  quest  for  truth  becomes  a  passion,  because  the  new 
mental  grasp  makes  possible  the  exact  steps  in  the  rea- 
soning process.  Self-consciousness  becomes  social  con- 
sciousness; and  before  this  age  is  passed,  the  authority  of 
the  group  is  final  for  one's  conduct.  "We  all  do  that,"  or 
"Everybody  does  this,"  or  "No  one  does  it  in  that  way"  are 
the  phrases  that  indicate  the  almost  slavish  devotion  of 
youth  to  the  social  group  in  which  his  lot  is  cast. 

The  craving  for  social  life  expresses  itself  in  two  gen- 
eral directions:  First,  in  seeking  the  companionship  of 
those  of  their  own  years.  Boys  find  their  chums  or  pals, 
while  girls  likewise  adopt  the  same  title  for  their  friends. 


THE  INTERMEDIATE  AND  HIS  WORLD  21 

This  distinction  exists  between  the  sexes,  however — that 
the  boys  bind  themselves  together  in  groups  or  gangs,  while 
their  sisters  are  content  with  the  intimacies  of  a  single 
comrade.  The  gang  is  a  group  of  chums  held  together  by 
group  loyalty.  The  leader  of  the  group  is  one  of  the  group. 
Where  girls  combine  in  numbers,  the  ties  holding  the 
group  together  seem  to  radiate  from  the  leader  to  each  of 
the  number  rather  than,  as  in  the  case  of  boys,  from  mem- 
ber to  member.  Having  now  arrived  at  an  age  permitting 
greater  freedom  of  action,  these  youths  seek  companion- 
ships wider  than  the  home  circle  or  the  immediate  contacts 
of  school  life.  By  a  process  of  social  gravitation  these 
groups  are  formed,  cemented  together  by  common  activity 
and  common  feelings  of  independence  and  secrecy.  Not 
to  be  one  of  a  gang  means  to  be  cut  off  from  the  com- 
monly accepted  form  of  social  living.  As  we  have  seen, 
many  of  the  out-of-school  hours  of  these  years  are  spent 
in  the  gang  or  with  the  chum,  talking,  working,  playing, 
building,  or  roaming  the  fields  and  woods  if  geographical 
proximity  permits.  W^e  shall  never  be  able  to  understand 
the  interests  and  life  of  the  young  until  we  unravel  the 
mystery  of  the  gang. 

A  second  direction  which  the  social  spirit  takes  is  to 
seek  recognition  of  adult  life.  To  be  independent  like  adults, 
to  participate  in  the  plans  of  the  family,  the  church,  the 
neighborhood,  is  the  ambition  of  every  wholesome  boy  or 
girl.  Youth  thrusts  itself  into  adult  life.  No  wonder  that 
its  inexperience  is  conspicuous.  But  only  by  such  sharing 
can  the  social  nature  properly  mature,  and  only  so  can 
experience  be  gained.  If,  in  the  midst  of  such  endeavor, 
the  natural  timidity  of  the  child  is  occasionally  reflected, 
no  one  need  wonder.  It  is  a  new  world  into  which  youth  is 
venturing,  seeking  to  find  its  way,  yet  ever  aware  of  its 
own  limitations. 

6.  The  call  to  leadership.  In  their  perplexity  and  long- 
ing the  boy  and  the  girl  fasten  upon  their  hero,  endowing 
him    with    every    conceivable    grace    and    charm,    hoping 


22  LEADERS    OP    YOUTH 

against  hope  that  this  hero  will  deign  to  look  upon  them 
and  to  reward  their  fidelity  by  some  token  of  esteem. 
In  the  home  and  out  of  it  the  young  during  these  years 
covet  consideration  and  recognition  from  those  older,  ask- 
ing that  their  own  expanding  powers  of  self-direction  and 
of  serious  reflection  shall  count  in  the  plans  of  the  mature 
world  of  which  they  already  feel  themselves  almost  a  part. 
Here  lies  straight  within  his  grasp  the  opportunity  of 
the  intermediate  worker.  The  call  of  youth  to  share  his 
life  with  adult  life,  the  demand  for  a  hero,  a  confidant — 
the  one  who  shall  help  unravel  the  mysteries  of  life  and 
help  him  understand  himself  in  his  new  being  and  his 
new  relations — is  the  call  of  God  for  intermediate  leader- 
ship. 

Questions 

1.  How  many  hours  do  the  pupils  of  your  community 
spend  in  the  public  schools?  Get  exact  information.  Ob- 
serve carefully  how  they  spend  the  remainder  of  their  time. 

2.  What  physical  characteristics  mark  the  intermediates? 

3.  How  does  the  mental  life  develop  in  these  years? 

4.  What  differences  in  social  development  between  boys 
and  girls  are  to  be  found? 

5.  Why  must  the  worker  with  intermediates  be  a  real 
leader? 

Observation 

Consider  for  three  or  four  days  the  activities  of  some 
boy  or  girl  of  twelve  to  fifteen  years  of  age.  Note  (1)  what 
he  does,  (2)  his  chief  interests,  (3)  his  attitude  toward 
home,  school,  and  work.  Keep  notes  upon  your  observa- 
tion and  compare  them  with  the  statements  found  in  this 
chapter. 


CHAPTER   II 
THE    SENIOR    AND    HIS    WORLD 

Students  from  fifteen  to  seventeen  years  of  age  consti- 
tute two  quite  distinct  groups:  first  are  those  who,  continu- 
ing their  education,  are  attendants  upon  some  high  school 
or  academy;  the  second  and  larger  group  is  made  up  of 
those  who  have  left  school  for  work  and  those  who  are 
living  at  home,  dependents  upon  the  family  for  support. 
Despite  the  widespread  influence  and  distribution  of  free 
public  high  schools  in  our  country  it  is  unfortunately  true 
that  relatively  few  American  children  avail  themselves  of 
their  benefits.  Economic  necessity,  ignorance,  lack  of  acces- 
sibility, result  in  these  opportunities  being  passed  by. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  multiplication  of  night  schools  in 
our  cities  and  the  development  in  the  business  world  of 
the  realization  that  trained  workers  are  more  valuable 
than  untrained  have  tended  to  supplement  the  meager  edu- 
cational training  of  those  who  have  for  one  reason  or 
another  left  the  grades.  Notwithstanding  this,  it  is  safe  to 
assume  that  the  far  larger  proportion  of  our  youth  of  the 
years  under  discussion  are  working  boys  and  girls  who, 
having  left  behind  the  days  of  formal  education,  are  now 
embarked  upon  some  business  career.  The  insistent  demand 
of  our  factory  age  is  for  the  services,  during  the  prime  of 
life,  of  both  sexes;  and  the  spirit  of  independence  drives 
these  young  workers  forth  to  seek  their  fortunes  in  the 
channels  of  trade  and  industry. 

1.  "Workers  and  high-scliool  students  in  the  depart- 
ment. It  is  a  startling  fact,  however,  that  the  senior  ranks 
in  the  Sunday  schools  are  made  up  predominantly  from  the 
smaller  group — from  those  who  are  still  in  school.  This 
is  in  part  accounted  for  by  the  fact  that  the  foreign-born 
child  or  the  child  of  foreign-born  parents  is  more  likely 

23 


24  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

to  be  a  Jew  or  a  Catholic  than  to  belong  to  a  family  reached 
by  the  Protestant  faith.  It  is  also  possible  that  American 
young  people,  who  have  broken  with  the  traditions  of  edu- 
cational discipline  and  so  have  too  meager  training  to 
enjoy  reading  or  study,  find  little  in  the  Sunday  school  to 
attract  them.  Still  further,  we  should  not  forget  the  temp- 
tation that  a  free  day  in  the  week  has  for  those  housed 
in  factory  or  store  for  the  other  six  days.  Again,  it  is 
doubtful  if  we,  who  are  most  interested  in  making  the 
Sunday  school  minister  to  all,  have  yet  discovered  the  inter- 
ests of  these  w^orkers  sufllciently  to  plan  our  worship,  our 
lessons,  and  our  activities  so  as  to  fit  their  needs.  At  any 
rate,  for  one  reason  or  another,  we  find  that  our  Sunday- 
school  constituency  in  the  Senior  Department  is  for  the 
most  part  made  up  of  high-school  boys  and  girls,  conspic- 
uous exceptions  being  found  chiefly  in  our  rural  churches. 

Any  discussion  of  the  senior  pupil,  therefore,  will  have  to 
divide  itself  into  two  distinct  parts:  first,  a  discussion  of 
the  high-school  group;  and,  second,  a  discussion  of  the 
remaining  members.  It  is  well  at  the  outset  to  bear  in 
mind  that  these  two  groups  are  not  by  nature  different. 
They  are  animated  by  the  same  natural  desires,  they  are 
passing  through  the  same  physiological  development  and 
the  consequent  psychological  and  social  process.  The  dif- 
ferences are  due  entirely  to  their  environment.  One  group 
is  as  good  as  the  other.  Both  are  of  equal  importance  in 
the  eyes  of  their  Creator  and  in  the  hearts  of  their  Sunday- 
school  teachers  and  friends.  It  is  with  no  attempt  to  estab- 
lish superiority  or  inferiority  between  them  or  in  esti- 
mates of  them  that  one  proceeds  on  this  dual  basis;  rather 
it  is  that  one  may  more  certainly  understand  each  group 
and,  in  consequence,  the  better  minister  to  it, 

2.  The  high-school  senior.  What  do  the  high-school 
boy  and  girl  do?  How  is  their  life  spent?  What  are  their 
interests  and  how  do  they  attempt  to  satisfy  those  interests? 
These  are  questions  of  first  importance  to  one  who  would  be 
the  leader  of  such  a  group. 


THE  SENIOR  AND  HIS  WORLD  25 

Approximately  five  and  one  half  hours  each  week  day, 
Saturday  excepted,  are  spent  in  school.  The  number  of 
hours  does  not  differ  greatly  from  the  time  thus  consumed 
in  the  grades;  but  the  nature  of  the  high-school  curriculum 
and  the  methods  employed  are  so  different  that  entrance 
into  high  school  marks  a  decided  turning  point.  The 
median  age  of  entrance  in  one  Iowa  school  was  found  to  be 
fourteen  and  nine  tenths,  which  makes  the  Senior  Depart- 
ment in  our  Sunday  schools  coincide  quite  closely  with  the 
period  spent  in  this  branch  of  the  public  school.^ 

King  writes: 

To  many  a  pupil  the  high  school  opens  as  a  new  world 
of  mysterious  possibilities.  This  attitude  of  eager  anticipa- 
tion is  well  expressed  by  one  student  who  writes:  "I  still 
feel  the  thrill  of  expectancy  with  which,  for  example,  I  en- 
tered upon  the  study  of  Latin.  The  teacher  was  the  guide. 
She  knew  Latin  land,  and  we  were  eager  to  follow  her 
through  that  delightful  country.  My  English  work  was  not 
a  gray  monotony  of  themes.  It  was  colored  with  the  pur- 
ple of  imagination."  "It  was  the  greatest  event  of  my  life 
when  I  entered  the  academy  as  a  freshman."  And  yet  the 
transition  is  often  effected  with  great  difficulty.  Another 
says:  "It  was  with  a  great  deal  of  pleasure  that  I  looked 
forward  to  my  entrance  into  the  high  school.  Why  I  was 
going  I  never  seriously  considered;  I  just  took  it  for 
granted  as  did  my  parents  that  I  should  go  through.  But 
my  real  entrance  was  far  from  what  I  had  pictured  it  to 
be  in  my  mind.  In  the  grades  there  had  always  been  a  con- 
genial, homelike  atmosphere  which  completely  dominated 
everything;  but  in  the  high  school  I  came  face  to  face  with 
an  absolutely  different  environment,  and  many  a  time  dur- 
ing my  first  year's  work  I  wished  I  were  back  in  that  dear 
old  grammar  school  which  I  had  learned  to  love  and  to 
respect!" 

Another  writes:  "After  having  been  the  important  A 
Class  of  the  last  grade  of  grammar  school  it  seemed  strange 
to  find  ourselves  submerged  in  a  larger  group  in  high 
school.  One  especial  difficulty  was  the  getting  accustomed 
to  having  different  teachers  for  every  subject,  the  getting 
acquainted  with  the  teachers,  and  the  fear  that  they  might 
not  like  us. 

1  From  The  High-School  Age,  p.  187,  by  Irving  King,  copyright,  1914.  Used 
by  special  permission  of  the  publishers,  The  Bobbs-Merrill  Company. 


26  LEADERS    OF   YOUTH 

"I  looked  upon  everything  at  that  time  as  being  Mg. 
The  teachers  seemed  to  me  as  being  very  noted  and  know- 
ing very  much,  and  for  these  reasons  I  stood  in  awe  of 
them.  Then,  I  felt  that  there  was  not  that  close  relation- 
ship between  pupil  and  teacher  there  had  been  in  the 
lower  grades.  Sometimes  I  thought  the  teachers  were  not 
very  religious  because  they  scolded  when  I  thought  they 
ought  to  be  kind  and  helpful. 

"But  when  I  came  to  my  sophomore  year,  I  looked  upon 
things  differently  and  partly  overcame  this  feeling  of  awe 
and  timidity.  I  had  more  confidence  in  myself  and  no 
longer  felt  my  schoolmates  were  any  bigger  than  myself. 
Moreover,  I  realized  that  the  instructors  were  not  so  distant 
after  all;  for  on  several  occasions,  both  in  lessons  and  in 
programs,  were  we  thrown  together,  and  each  time  the 
instructors  put  forth  great  effort  to  show  their  personal 
interest  in  us.   .    .    . 

"In  spite  of  difficulty  of  adjustment  when  entering  the 
high  school  I  felt  a  renewed  interest  in  school  work.  The 
increased  field  of  work  together  with  the  less  close  super- 
vision made  me  feel  more  independence,  more  responsibility, 
in  regard  to  that  work.   ..." 

Another  says:  "One  thing  that  stands  uppermost  in  my 
mind  was  the  lack  of  interest  on  the  part  of  the  teachers  in 
helping  the  pupil  in  selecting  his  course  of  study.'" 

These  reports,  from  some  who  have  experienced  the 
transition  from  grammar  to  high-school  grades,  clearly  indi- 
cate the  turning  point  which  this  experience  becomes.  Sun- 
day-school workers  with  seniors  should  recognize  the  fact 
that  school  now  becomes  something  more,  something  new 
and  different.  It  becomes  a  testing  time,  bringing  to  the 
fore  certain  mental  and  moral  traits  and  becoming  the 
environment,  mental  and  social,  in  which  character  is 
being  wrought  out.  The  richness  of  the  high-school  curricu- 
lum, as  has  already  been  noted,  is  made  possible  by  the 
widening  scope  of  the  mental  life,  while,  in  turn,  the 
enlarged  range  of  studies  tends  further  and  further  to 
widen  this  scope.  The  larger  freedom  of  high-school  life 
is  possible  only  because  life  is  achieving  freedom;  but, 
likewise,  this  increased  freedom  of  action  is  in  itself  tending 


See  The  High-School  Age,  Irving  King,  The  Bobbs-Mcrrill  Company. 


THE  SENIOR  AND  HIS  WORLD  27 

further  and  further  to  the  achievement  of  freedom  in  the 
individuals. 

School  is  a  world  in  which  the  enlarging  personality 
finds  a  sympathetic  and  well-articulated  social  and  mental 
complex  wherein  it  may  pursue  still  further  its  own  unfold- 
ing. To  those  who  become  happily  adjusted  to  its  studies, 
to  its  close  work,  to  its  self-directed  clubs  and  social 
groups,  and  to  its  voluntary  friendships  and  confidences 
between  student  and  student,  and  between  student  and 
teacher,  school  life  furnishes  a  fortunate  world  in  which 
youth  learns  to  live  by  living. 

Obviously  the  religious  teacher  of  high-school  students 
should  know  this  life — its  studies,  its  social  activities,  its 
athletic  strivings,  its  viewpoint.  To  dismiss  the  world  of 
the  school  as  merely  preparatory  to  life  itself  is  far  from 
appreciating  what  is  going  on,  for  high-school  life  has 
become  not  preparation  for  life  but  life  itself,  lived  in  a 
most  intense  manner  and  subject  to  the  pressure  of  the 
same  emotions  and  to  similar  motives  and  judgments  as 
the  world  outside  the  school.  For  the  student  must  no 
longer  think  of  school  life  as  filled  with  books  and  lessons 
alone.  Rightly  or  wrongly  the  day  has  for  the  student  not 
alone  lessons  to  learn  and  to  recite  but  friendships  to 
renew,  social  adjustments  to  make;  and  perhaps  the  more 
vital  present  interest  of  the  school  is  found  in  these  by- 
products of  school  experiences. 

Says  a  Sunday-school  teacher: 

Every  morning  as  I  go  into  town  to  my  office  I  know  at 
a  certain  corner  I  will  be  joined  on  the  car  by  a  fourteen- 
and-a-half  year  old,  tall,  bob-haired  girl,  starting  on  her 
way  to  school.  School  for  her  is  a  kind  of  duty  life  has 
imposed  upon  her,  where,  for  five  and  one-half  hours  each 
day,  not  to  mention  the  extras  for  music,  she  suffers  a 
restraint  not  altogether  desirable  and  yet  not  wholly  with- 
out some  attractions;  because  it  is  a  meeting  place  for  all 
her  associates — boys  and  girls — and,  more  especially,  the 
boys  are  particularly  interesting  to  her.  .  .  .  Each  day  she 
has  some  wonderful  and  new  experiences  to  relate  about 
one  [boy]  seemingly  quite  vital  from  her  viewpoint. 


28  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

Here  we  find,  not  at  all  uncommonly,  the  interest  in  the 
opposite  sex  becoming  dominant  in  the  school  life,  vastly- 
more  absorbing  than  book  or  other  interests,  athletics 
excepted,  of  which  this  young  lady  is  very  fond. 

Athletics,  capable  of  efficient  organization,  often  become 
the  chief  interest  in  the  lives  of  students,  the  day's  school 
work  taking  flavor  from  the  gymnasium  or  the  baseball  or 
football  field.  Debates,  literary  contests,  school  publica- 
tions, class  elections,  and  social  functions,  all  enter  into 
what  we  term  "high-school  life,"  each  contributing  some- 
thing to  experience  and  character.  It  is  the  world  for 
those  who  have  entered  in. 

The  life  outside  of  school  is  a  reflection  and  an  extension 
of  the  school  experience.  The  world  of  nature  lures  to 
further  exploration,  undertaken  voluntarily  but  colored  in 
the  process  by  the  knowledge  built  up  in  the  laboratory  or 
the  classroom.  If  we  should  list  the  spare-time  activities 
of  these  boys  and  girls,  we  should  find  that  hunting,  fish- 
ing, swimming,  trap  setting,  football,  baseball,  basketball, 
tennis,  building  canoes,  working  with  chemicals,  making  fly- 
ing machines,  cooking,  candy  making,  sewing,  knitting, 
crocheting,  and  tatting,  together  with  such  slight  duties  as 
the  home  demands,  are  the  absorbing  occupations. 

The  sense  of  independence  demands  money,  as  does  also 
the  desire  to  possess  what  only  money  can  purchase.  Hence 
we  shall  flnd  that  many  spend  some  of  their  spare  time  in 
earning  money  by  means  of  paper  routes,  working  in 
stores  and  offices,  collecting  accounts,  and  in  various  other 
ways. 

We  must  never  forget  that  the  demand  for  romanticism 
at  this  age  leads  to  much  reading  or  to  the  modern  sub- 
stitute for  reading,  the  enjoyment  of  the  "movie."  These 
two  activities  must  be  added  to  the  above  before  we  can  get 
a  comprehensive  view  of  the  world  in  which  the  high- 
school  boy  and  girl  live. 

3.  The  senior  in  the  business  world.  Quite  in  con- 
trast to  the  program  already  discovered  is  the  life  of  those 


THE  SENIOR  AND  HIS  WORLD  29 

who  have  left  school  to  enter  the  business  world.  It  may 
be  that  because  we  too  are  in  that  world  we  think  we 
know  quite  fully  what  their  lives  are  like.  May  it  not  be 
possible  that  our  very  proximity  has  spoiled  our  perspective, 
and  that  we  need  to  examine  afresh  what  the  experiences  of 
these,  our  juniors,  are? 

Those  who  at  this  early  age  have  entered  the  doors 
of  commerce  and  trade  have  brought  with  them  meager 
equipment  for  their  tasks.  Their  schooling  has  been  trun- 
cated at  twelve  or  fourteen,  leaving  them  with  a  scattered 
accumulation  of  information  not  well  organized  nor  well 
mastered.  This  is  not  the  fault  of  the  school  system,  as 
many  would  believe,  but  the  necessary  consequence  of 
immaturity.  Let  the  system  bear  all  the  blame  that  is  due 
it,  still  we  must  recall  that  the  child  in  the  few  years 
that  have  passed  since  it  entered  school  has  had  to  accom- 
plish prodigious  things.  It  is  a  marvel  that  so  much  is 
done.  And  if  a  narrowing  of  studies  be  sought  in  the 
hopes  of  greater  expertness  in  each  branch,  we  must  bal- 
ance that  advantage  against  the  too  meager  background  of 
experience  obvious  in  the  lives  of  these  pupils. 

Be  that  as  it  may,  here  they  are,  these  boys  and  girls 
of  fifteen  to  seventeen,  seeking  admission  to  business, 
blessed  with  bodies  expanding  into  full  maturity,  brains 
active  and  ready  for  new  ideas,  and  hands  unskilled  but 
eager  to  become  skillful.  That  is,  the  foregoing  is  true 
if  they  have  had  good  heritage  and  sufficient  food  and 
careful  rearing.  Unfortunately,  too  many  come  from  the 
ranks  of  those  who  know  not  how  to  feed  and  rear  aright, 
or,  knowing,  are  too  poor  to  put  their  knowledge  into 
practice.  These  latter  bring  with  them  bodies  needing  good 
food,  fresh  air,  and  play,  none  of  which  is  the  business 
world  likely  to  supply  them  with  in  abundance.  School  has 
given  no  expertness  which  the  business  world  can  use,  for 
penmanship  has  not  developed  to  a  satisfactory  stage, 
spelling  is  still  wretchedly  mastered,  and  the  hands  are 
untrained  to  any  specific  endeavor. 


30  LEADERS    OF   YOUTH 

It  is  obvious  that  industry,  at  its  own  expense,  must 
train  these  workers  to  become  efficient — a  long  and  costly 
process.  Yet  certain  advantages  accrue  both  to  the  busi- 
ness man  and  to  the  youth.  The  mind  is  plastic  and  easily 
lends  itself  to  training,  such  training  in  particular  as  busi- 
ness demands.  Short-cut  methods  in  accounting,  business 
forms  in  the  office,  machine  technique  in  the  factory,  store 
routine  behind  the  counter  or  in  the  wrapping  room,  are 
all  possible  upon  the  basis  of  youth's  teachableness.  More 
than  that,  the  future  is  before  the  boy  and  the  girl,  a  future 
full  of  possibilities  of  promotion,  of  appreciation,  and  of 
success.  The  four  high-school  years  mean  for  the  business 
youth  four  years  of  preparation  in  the  fundamentals  of  his 
life's  future  work. 

When  we  come  to  examine  the  day's  work  in  detail  we  are 
confronted  with  a  round  of  duties,  which  in  time  tend  to 
become  quite  as  monotonous  and  humdrum  as  the  round  of 
school  tasks.  It  is  well  to  remember  that  enthusiastic 
participation  in  each  day's  undertaking  is  the  best  prepara- 
tion for  promotion;  but  when  the  relation  between  the 
present  task  and  its  final  completion  is  far  removed;  when 
the  sewing  of  a  glove,  the  knitting  of  a  stocking,  the  tending 
of  a  loom,  the  wrapping  of  a  package,  the  collection  of  a 
bill,  the  sweeping  of  a  store,  the  pushing  of  a  truck,  and 
the  final  profits  of  the  establishment  which  mean  the  suc- 
cess or  failure  of  the  enterprise  are  too  far  removed  to 
see  or  to  feel  the  correlation,  shall  we  wonder  that  the 
interest  flags,  enthusiasm  wanes,  and  that  the  business  task 
becomes  a  routine  from  which  the  young  seek  release  at 
the  earliest  possible  moment?  It  is  safe  to  say  that,  even 
more  than  with  those  in  the  high  school,  the  day  is  spent 
as  the  necessary  drudgery  of  living  while  the  vital  interests 
of  life  are  found  elsewhere.  Yet  the  business  hours,  because 
of  their  very  bulk,  constitute  the  major  portion  of  the 
life  of  these  youths. 

How  far  business  shall  develop  the  noblest  and  best 
within   one   is    determined   by   how   large    self-direction    is 


THE  SENIOR  AND  HIS  WORLD  31 

possible  under  the  system.  For  these  boys  and  girls  are 
achieving  freedom  as  well  as  are  their  friends  in  school. 
In  such  positions  as  the  merest  handworker  in  a  mill  or 
factory  little  is  done  to  stimulate  initiative  or  to  arouse 
latent  possibilities.  It  is  little  wonder  that  many  of 
these  workers  learn  to  lead  a  treadmill  existence  futured 
by  no  promise  of  large  success.  On  the  other  hand,  many 
industries  are  stimulating  originality  by  bonuses  for  new 
ideas  and  giving  immediate  recognition  to  those  betraying 
anything  that  looks  like  real  ability. 

Fortunately,  on  the  whole,  the  business  world  prefers 
that  its  young  shall  do  well,  grow  in  ability  and  in  charac- 
ter, and  become  in  the  years  before  them  capable  citizens. 
And  it  is  increasingly  apparent  that  more  and  more  busi- 
ness concerns  are  taking  a  watchful  and  active  interest 
in  the  lives  of  their  employees,  young  and  old. 

Here,  then,  amid  these  surroundings,  in  contact  with  fel- 
low employees  of  their  own  age  and  older,  of  their  own  sex 
or  both  sexes,  these  boys  and  girls  must  learn  to  adjust 
themselves  to  social  living,  to  discover  the  inherent  capaci- 
ties within  them,  and  to  gain  self-mastery.  Their  own 
scant  preparation  for  the  task  is  their  greatest  handicap. 
The  want  of  a  sympathetic  and  an  understanding  leader 
is  their  greatest  misfortune. 

Out  of  business  hours  what  do  they  do?  For  those  who 
wish  to  go  on  with  their  educational  preparation  there 
are  lessons  which  consume  several  evenings  of  the  week; 
for  others  home  duties  take  a  portion  of  their  time.  The 
remaining  hours  are  theirs  to  spend  as  they  please;  for 
with  going  to  work  comes  freedom  to  go  about;  and  many 
are  for  the  first  time  away  from  home.  In  the  places  of 
employment  are  congenial  companions  who  are  ready  to 
join  in  utilizing  the  unused  portions  of  the  day.  Lacking 
initiative  to  provide  their  own  entertainment,  many  seek 
relief  from  weariness  and  idleness  in  the  '"movie,"  the 
dance  hall,  in  reading,  or  in  the  society  of  their  kind.  The 
gang  spirit,  as  active  among  the  workers  as  among  the 


32  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

school  constituency,  displays  itself  in  groups  who  seek 
some  convenient  rendezvous.  Athletics  come  in  for  a  part 
of  the  spare  hours.  Perhaps  nowhere  does  the  working 
boy  or  girl  display  a  greater  paucity  of  initiative  than  in 
his  recreations.  Commercialized  forms  of  amusement,  ready 
made,  prove  most  attractive  and  stimulating.  The  settle- 
ment worker  and  the  school  teacher  who  attempt  social 
service  of  this  sort  alone  know  how  difficult  it  is  to  organize 
the  play  life  of  these  young  people.  "Beaus  and  clothes" 
take  a  large  place  in  the  minds  of  the  girls,  and  it  is  fair 
to  believe  that  boys  have  corresponding  interests. 

4.  The  physical  and  psychological  development  of 
seniors.  In  the  preceding  chapter  it  was  pointed  out  that 
nature  had  about  completed  her  body-building  processes  by 
fifteen.  It  is  necessary  to  consider  what  the  years  before 
us  further  accomplish  for  the  young.  And  here  we  may 
consider  both  classes — worker  and  high-school  student — 
alike.  Foremost  is  the  emotional  unrest  due  to  the  pres- 
ence of  new  powers  and  the  life  adjustments  that  are  taking 
place.  This  emotional  unrest  manifests  itself  in  nervous 
behavior,  in  giggles  and  laughter,  in  boisterous  display  of 
self,  at  times  in  hysterical  tears,  in  sex  consciousness  in 
the  presence  of  those  to  whom  nature  is  attracting,  in 
tempestuous  outbursts  of  passion,  in  melancholy  brooding, 
in  unbounded  enthusiasm  of  greater  or  less  duration.  No 
one  person  exhibits  all  these  characteristics,  but  all  are 
shown  by  some  and  more  than  one  by  many. 

Intellectually  the  life  seeks  knowledge,  certifies  itself  of 
the  truthfulness  of  accepted  ideas  by  experiment,  attempts 
to  discover  new  and  different  avenues  of  adventure,  tries 
out  various  tastes,  sights,  and  sounds  just  to  see  what  they 
are  like,  admires  expertness  in  any  line,  and  seeks  to  attain 
such  expertness  for  itself,  finds  the  actual  accomplishment 
of  its  object  a  tiresome  process,  so  frequently  shifts  its 
activity  in  consequence,  allows  its  imagination  wide  range 
— building  its  air  castles  and  seeking  its  knights-errant. 

This  is  the  romanticizing  period  of  life,  just  entered  upon 


THE  SENIOR  AND  HIS  WORLD  33 

and  destined  to  continue  through  much  of  the  succeeding 
department.  The  range  of  interest  in  the  opposite  sex 
varies  all  the  way  from  a  diffused  interest  in  boys  in  gen- 
eral to  passionate  devotion  to  the  object  of  its  desire. 
Juliet  and  Viola,  Olivia  and  Rosalind,  were  of  this  age,  as 
well  as  Romeo  and  Hamlet. 

5.  The  religious  development  of  seniors.  Morally  and 
religiously  this  is  the  time  of  testing  conventions,  of  trying 
for  oneself  what  the  inner  meaning  of  morals  and  religion 
may  be.  It  is,  too,  the  time  of  greatest  reverence  for  con- 
ventions, paradoxical  as  that  may  sound,  when  the  ritual 
and  the  solemn  service  find  a  responsive  chord  in  the 
heart  of  youth.  Now  is  the  time  of  high  resolve  with  little 
practice  or  strength  gained  by  practice  to  sustain  the 
aspirations.  Truly  this  is  the  trying  time  of  life,  "when 
a  little  good  goes  further  for  good,  and  a  little  evil  goes 
further  for  evil  than  at  any  other  period  of  life."  It  is 
the  time  when  the  steadying  hand  of  a  friend  who  is 
older  and  who  knows,  who  expects  the  best,  yet  is  willing 
to  trust  the  inexperience  of  youth,  whose  sympathies  are 
broad  yet  deep,  and  whose  confidence  is  unshaken  though 
always  sensitive  to  moods  and  impulses,  is  most  needed  and 
valued.     The  leader  of  seniors  may  become  that  friend. 

Questions 

1.  Are  the  larger  proportion  of  the  senior  members  of 
your  Sunday  school  in  school  or  in  business  life? 

2.  In  addition  to  teaching  lessons  what  has  the  high 
school  of  your  community  done  for  its  students? 

3.  With  how  many  of  your  pupils  is  reading  a  craze  just 
now?  the  "movie"?  wireless?  woodcraft? 

4.  Do  your  pupils  who  are  engaged  in  business  show 
greater  enthusiasm  for  their  work  than  do  the  high-school 
students  for  their  task?    How  do  you  know? 

Observation 
Using  a  boy  or  girl  between  fifteen  and  eighteen,  follow 
the  observation  suggestions  found  in  Chapter  I. 


CHAPTER  III 
THE  SIGNIFICANCE  OP  SEX  DEVELOPMENT 

As  the  source  of  many  of  the  changes  that  are  taking 
place  in  the  transition  from  childhood  to  youth  lies  in  the 
fact  of  sex  development,  it  is  necessary  to  come  to  a  thor- 
ough understanding  of  this  significant  physiological  phe- 
nomenon, for  here  is  found  the  key  that  shall  unlock  the 
mystery  of  all  these  strange,  anomalous  contradictions  and 
amazing  outbursts  so  frequently  found  in  the  growing  boy 
or  girl.  It  is  a  physiological  fact,  primarily,  but  its  influ- 
ence radiates  to  every  department  of  life;  to  the  ideas  and 
ideals  quite  as  much  as  to  the  bodily  habits  and  emotional 
reactions.  One  is  hardly  prepared  to  consider  the  spiritual 
and  moral  welfare  of  youth  who  is  not  familiar  with  the 
mechanism  of  nature  for  producing  a  man  out  of  the  boy 
or  a  woman  out  of  the  girl. 

1.  Sex  development  and  bodily  growth.  The  first 
and  most  easily  observed  fact  is  the  close  correlation 
between  sex  development  and  bodily  growth.  The  two  are 
so  intimately  related  that  we  are  safe  in  assuming  that 
sudden  increase  in  growth  of  the  body  is  evidence  of  ac- 
companying sex  development.  Delayed  bodily  growth  is 
likewise  a  fair  indication  of  delayed  physiological  pro- 
gress. One  must  keep  in  mind,  of  course,  that  heredity 
plays  a  part  in  the  amount  of  physical  growth,  and  one 
should  reckon  the  relative  bodily  expansion  rather  than 
the  absolute  increase  in  height  or  weight.  It  is  safe, 
then,  to  conclude  that  sex  development  is  a  cause,  an  effect, 
or  a  concomitant  of  general  physical  growth.  Either  the 
former  produces  the  latter,  or  the  latter  produces  the 
former,  or  both  are  affected  by  a  common  cause.  The 
two  go  hand  in  hand,  so  that  whatever  affects  the  one  is 
certain  to  affect  the  other.     Normal,  healthy  bodily  devel- 

34 


THE   SIGNIFICANCE  OF  SEX  DEVELOPMENT     35 

opment  is  the  best  preparation  for  the  normal,  healthy 
beginning  of  sex  life.  Physical  or  mental  stimulants,  nar- 
cotics, unwholesome  diet,  insufficient  nourishment,  lack  of 
exercise,  damaging  fatigue,  or  any  other  factor  that  devi- 
talizes or  stunts  the  physical  organism  is  certain  to  react 
deleteriously  upon  the  ripening  of  sex  functioning. 

2  External  and  internal  manifestations  of  sex  de- 
velopment. The  second  most  obvious  fact  regarding  sex 
maturing  is  the  growth  of  pubic  hair  and  the  increase  in 
size  of  the  external  generative  organs.  These  are  nature's 
announcement  to  youth  of  a  change  that  is  going  on  within 
his  physical  being.  The  relative  suddenness  of  the  appear- 
ance of  these  signs  and  the  rapidity  of  their  development 
are  frequent  causes  of  curiosity  in  the  boy  or  girl,  leading 
sometimes  to  morbid  and  unwholesome  speculation,  some- 
times to  unfortunate  practices. 

These  external  manifestations  of  change  are  followed  at 
a  short  interval  by  functioning  of  the  internal  sex  mechan- 
ism startlingly  announced  to  the  girl  by  her  menstrual 
periods,  and  to  the  boy,  not  infrequently,  by  nightly 
emissions.  What  has  really  taken  place  is  that  nature  has 
at  last  arrived  at  the  time  when  the  body  must  be  perfected 
to  carry  on  the  life  processes  of  the  race;  to  which  end 
the  ovaries  of  the  girl  begin  to  exude  germ  ova,  and  the 
testicles  of  the  boy  to  produce  spermatozoa  for  their  fer- 
tilizations. These  internal  glands  have  lain  dormant  until 
now.  But  with  their  growth  and  functioning  has  come  a 
new  day  in  the  life  of  the  child. 

3.  Sex  instruction  and  training.  Such  has  been  the 
ignorance  in  the  past  that  this  momentous  change  has 
come  upon  our  pupils  unawares,  and,  uninstructed  by  father 
and  mother,  the  youth  is  compelled  to  face  the  grave  experi- 
ences unwarned  and  uninstructed.  From  such  culpable 
parental  neglect  comes  untold  injury  to  the  growing  boy 
and  girl.  Often  not  only  physical  injury  ensues  but  still 
more  serious  mental  and  moral  damage. 

Obviously  sex  instruction  is  needed.     The   natural  per- 


36  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

sons  to  give  such  instruction  are  the  parents.  But,  unfor- 
tunately, they  are  often  ignorant  or,  when  wise,  are  not 
always  brave  for  the  task.  Long  training  in  false  modesty 
has  sealed  their  lips,  and,  in  consequence,  children  are  left 
to  suffer  physical  and  mental  degradation.  Some  have  sub- 
stituted books  for  the  more  practical  and  efficient  personal 
helpfulness.  Such  books,  however,  while  furnishing  the 
requisite  information,  leave  the  imagination  to  roam  unin- 
terrupted over  the  emotional  excitation  of  sex  imagery. 
Far  better  is  it  to  learn  of  these  matters  directly  by  word 
of  mouth  from  those  whose  conversation  is  least  stimu- 
lating to  unwholesome  ideas.  Until  parents  have  been 
trained  to  do  their  duty  by  their  children,  it  will  remain 
the  task  of  the  public-school  teacher  and  of  the  Sunday- 
school  teacher  to  furnish  such  information  as  is  essential 
to  the  health  and  morals  of  the  rising  generation. 

We  begin  to  see,  then,  what  sex  development  really  is. 
It  is  nature's  method  for  continuing  the  life  of  the  race. 
It  is  physiological  development,  neither  moral  nor  im- 
moral in  itself.  It  cannot  be  ignored,  nor  should  its  acquire- 
ment submit  youth  to  needless  anxiety  nor  to  morbid 
speculation.  It  is  a  fact  of  our  physical  being,  comparable 
to  the  function  of  eating  and  drinking,  with  this  differ- 
ence— that  the  latter  is  far  more  a  personal  and  individual 
matter,  while  the  former  is  not  a  personal  matter  alone  but 
primarily  a  social  matter. 

But  reproductive  development  is  more  than  a  physio- 
logical process.  With  the  dawning  of  these  physical  powers 
comes  the  awakening  of  a  new  instinct.  As  many  studies 
of  child  life  have  conclusively  proved,  it  is  not  true  that 
interest  in  sex  begins  only  at  the  beginning  of  puberty. 
But  it  is  at  this  time  the  new  instinct  makes  itself  com- 
mandingly  felt.  It  cannot  be  put  off.  And  an  instinct  is 
more  than  a  physical  matter.  It  involves  mental  processes 
as  well.  Sex  enters  consciously  into  our  waking  and  sleep- 
ing life  and  its  force  is  felt  in  many  divergent  channels. 
New   sensations   are   discovered,  and   new   emotions   begin 


THE   SIGNIFICANCE   OF   SEX   DEVELOPMENT     37 

to  force  their  attentions  upon  one.  Though  the  youth  may 
not  be  aware  of  their  source,  these  sensations  and  emo- 
tions pervade  the  very  tissue  of  his  life. 

4.  Differences  between  boys  and  girls.  But  we  must 
return  to  the  physiological  fact  of  sex  and  note  certain 
variations.  First  of  all  is  the  difference  between  boys  and 
girls.  In  general,  girls  mature  from  a  year  and  a  half  to 
two  years  earlier  than  boys.  As  general  maturity  follows 
coincidently  with  sex  maturity,  it  follows  that  girls  are  in 
general  a  year  or  more  ahead  of  boys  of  their  own  ages. 
"Boys  are  so  silly,"  one  girl  put  it;  and  undoubtedly  there 
is  on  the  part  of  most  girls  a  feeling  of  superiority  of  view- 
point. On  the  other  hand,  one  must  remember  that  the 
boys  overtake  the  girls  in  the  middle  teens,  the  equality 
of  the  sexes  being  thus  resumed.  These  differences  in  the 
progress  of  development  reflect  themselves  in  the  points  at 
which  social  interests  are  widely  divergent  and  also  at  the 
points  at  which  they  again  draw  together.  No  worker 
with  these  years  can  ignore  the  natural  differences  thus 
accentuated.  In  programs  of  recreation  and  fellowship  it 
is  necessary  to  utilize  natural  likes  and  dislikes  as  they 
appear.  No  one  can  force  real  cooperation  between  boys 
and  girls  where  such  cooperation  is  against  the  natural 
propensities  of  their  being.  But  later  it  will  be  necessary 
with  as  great  precision  to  reckon  with  the  common  interests 
of  both  sexes. 

But  the  difference  between  the  Sexes  does  not  end  with 
variation  as  to  the  age  of  maturity.  Nature  has  set  out  to 
differentiate  the  sexes,  and  increasingly  we  must  expect 
to  see  the  peculiarities  of  each  group  make  themselves 
apparent.     Says  Miss  Moxcey: 

Up  to  this  time  most  sex  differences  in  activity  between 
boys  and  girls  are  artificial.  The  average  ten-year-old 
girl  who  has  had  a  free  chance  and  proper  clothing  can 
climb  a  tree,  "skin  a  cat"  as  neatly,  "chin"  a  bar  as  many 
times — yes,  and  bat  a  ball  as  far— -as  a  boy  of  the  same 
age.  It  is  not  certain  that  she  can  throw  the  ball  as  far 
but  she  can  skate  as  well.     Indeed,  the  fact  that  they  do 


38  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

not  settle  questions  of  superiority  in  quite  as  primitive 
a  fashion  as  their  brothers  was  due,  if  the  testimony  of 
many  older  girls  is  not  to  be  barred  as  unreliable  memory, 
not  to  any  difference  in  the  fighting  instinct  but  to  adult 
authority.  There  may,  however,  have  been  a  greater 
Instinctive  submission  to  that  authority.' 

But  with  the  dawning  of  the  new  life  the  characteristics 
of  the  sex  appear  in  each  group.  The  boys  become  more 
masculine  and  the  girls  more  feminine.  We  need  not 
inquire  in  how  far  this  transition  of  ideals  is  determined 
by  nature  and  how  much  by  environment.  It  is  safe  to 
assert  that  consciousness  of  sex  tends  to  draw  the  two 
grouQS  apart,  and  in  their  separation  each  is  building  up 
those  qualities  that  determine  his  future  outlook.  Likely 
we  have  in  the  past  overstressed  the  inherent  differences. 
But  when  due  consideration  is  given  to  the  influence  of 
Mrs.  Grundy,  we  have  to  admit  that  during  these  years  a 
change,  slow  or  sudden,  is  going  on,  the  end  of  which  is 
the  larger  life  of  the  race. 

5.  The  social  grouping  of  each  sex.  The  contrast 
of  importance  to  the  worker  with  intermediates  and  seniors 
is  the  divergent  ways  in  which  the  social  groupings  are 
wrought  within  each  group.  The  boy  has  his  chum  and  his 
hero — the  former,  of  his  own  age;  the  latter,  his  confidant, 
older  than  himself,  embodying  all  that  he  idealizes.  The 
girl  too  has  her  chum  of  her  own  age  and  also  someone 
whom  she  adores — a  young  woman  who  possesses  all  the 
charms  and  graces  that  the  girl  would  attain.  It  is  inter- 
esting to  note  that  these  older  personages  embody  for  each 
sex  the  peculiar  qualities  toward  which  nature  is  pushing 
on  each  person.  If  it  is  insisted  that  the  boy  previously 
worships  his  father  as  his  hero,  and  the  girl  her  mother  as 
her  heroine,  it  is  well  to  remember  that  the  boy  equally 
admires  his  mother's  qualities  and  finds  in  her  a  confidante 
more  satisfactory  to  his  childish  needs  than  is  found  in 
the   paternal   parent;    while,   conversely,   the   girl    as   fre- 


^  Girlhood  and  Character,  Moxcey,  page  68. 


THE   SIGNIFICANCE  OF  SEX  DEVELOPMENT     39 

quently  seeks  her  hero  and  ideal  not  in  the  feminine  per- 
sonality of  her  mother  but  in  the  masculine  parent.  At  this 
age  each  sex  seeks  its  ideal  in  personality  endowed  with 
the  peculiar  ideals  of  the  group.    Further: 

Before  the  boy  finds  life  not  worth  living  without  the 
girl,  and  before  he  discusses  the  universe  with  his  one  com- 
pletely understanding  chum,  during  all  the  vital  formative 
period  of  early  adolescence,  first  and  foremost,  the  law  of 
the  boy's  life  is  loyalty  to  the  gang.  Does  anything  in  the 
girl's  life  correspond  to  the  boy's  gang?  ...  A  boy  forms 
a  gang  with  other  boys,  because  they  want  to  do  some- 
thing, and  this  takes  cooperation.  We  are  beginning  to 
see  that  from  time  immemorial  the  little  girl's  education 
has  made  her  lose  some  stages  from  her  development.  The 
taboo  on  active  physical  play  has  thrown  her  back  on  intro- 
spection. .  .  .  She  thus  becomes  engrossed  in  her  own  self, 
her  own  thoughts,  ambitions,  and  feelings.  With  these  as 
her  primary  interests  companionship  is  sought  for  the  pur- 
pose of  expressing  these  inner  attitudes,  and  for  this  one 
companion  at  a  time  is  enough;  more  are  embarrassing.  .  .  . 

But  the  raw  social  impulse  of  this  stage  of  development 
is  too  strong  to  be  entirely  submerged.  She  must  have 
people  about  her  and,  at  times,  plenty  of  them.  Then  it  is 
that  cliques  are  formed  among  several  pairs  of  chums. 
Under  the  conditions  of  its  formation  the  group  must  needs 
be  small.  Habit  quickly  makes  it  an  exclusive  thing,  and 
its  pettiness  becomes  the  despair  of  mother  and  teacher.^ 

Whether  or  not  Miss  Moxcey's  explanation  of  the  absence 
of  girls'  gangs  is  altogether  satisfactory,  one  cannot  deny 
the  accuracy  of  the  description  of  the  differences  manifest 
between  the  social  life  of  the  teen-age  boys  and  that  of  the 
girls  of  the  same  age.  Unlike  the  junior  boys  and  girls, 
whose  social  experiences  parallel  each  other  at  every  point, 
the  intermediate  and  senior  organizations  stand  in  striking 
contrast  to  each  other,  and  all  social  effort  on  behalf  of 
this  group  will  need  to  be  articulated  according  to  these 
differences. 

When  groups  of  girls,  commensurate  to  the  size  of  the 
boys'  gangs,  are  formed  under  the  initiation  of  a  strong 


Girlhood  and  Character,  Moxrey,  pages  109-10. 


40 


LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 


leader,  they  are  held  together,  as  Miss  Moxcey  has  so  well 
shown,  by  the  adhesive  power  that  exists  between  each  girl 
and  the  leader;  whereas  in  the  gangs  of  boys  the  cohesion 
is  found  to  hold  the  boys  together  regardless  of  the  leader. 
Should  the  girls'  leader  disappear,  the  group  will  dissolve; 
while  with  the  disappearance  of  the  leader  of  the  boys  a 
new  leader  is  found,  and  the  spirit  of  the  gang  survives 
such  interruptions  to  its  life. 

The  Gang's  Hold  on  the  Boy 


Leader 


From  every  boy  to  the  leader,  via  every  other  boy.     If  the  leader  drops  out 
the  solidarity  of  the  gang  pushes  another  leader  to  the  front. 


The  Girls'  Grolt»ing 

I^^  The  Leaders 
Interest 


From  every  girl  direct  to  the  leader.  The  dotted  lines  indicate  the  weaker, 
reflected  bond  of  interest  of  all  the  other  girls  ic  each  individual  because  of  her 
devotion  to  the  common  ador^e. 


THE   SIGNIFICANCE   OF  SEX  DEVELOPMENT     41 

For  the  Sunday-school  classes  and  for  the  life  of  the 
department  this  all  means  that  the  leader  or  teacher  finds 
among  his  boys  a  fairly  well-defined  social  spirit  into  which 
he  must  fit  and  in  which  he  will  find  his  best  opportunities. 
His  class  or  his  department  as  a  whole  is  a  gang,  the  spirit 
of  which  he  must  learn  direct  by  becoming  a  member  of 
it,  sharing  its  life,  enjoying  its  fellowship,  and  creating, 
for  it  and  through  it,  its  ideals.  The  teacher  or  leader  of 
girls  of  these  years  will  find,  on  the  contrary,  that  she  is 
called  to  make  a  group  by  the  force  of  her  own  personality, 
nor  need  she  be  surprised  to  discover  that  the  esprit  de 
corps  of  the  class  or  of  a  group  of  girls  in  the  department 
is  of  her  own  making  and  depends  on  her  for  its  very  life. 
She  is  central  as  the  male  teacher  is  not.  He  must  win 
his  place  in  the  gang;  she  must  make  a  gang  into  which 
to  inject  her  own  personality  and  ideals. 

6.  Variation  ivithin  each  sex.  Let  us  turn  from  these 
differences  between  the  sexes  to  note  certain  variations  in 
the  developing  sex  life  in  individuals.  Causes  of  variation 
in  the  time  of  the  beginning  of  adolescence  may  be  found 
in  three  quarters:  first,  in  heredity;  secondly,  in  the  physi- 
cal background  of  childhood;  and,  thirdly,  in  the  imme- 
diate environment  of  the  youth. 

Differences  due  to  heredity — that  is,  to  family,  to  nation- 
ality or  race,  or  to  climatic  conditions — are  totally  beyond 
human  control;  their  interest  lies  only  in  the  fact  that  one 
must  reckon  with  them  in  directing  the  lives  of  the 
young.  Social  workers  in  the  foreign  quarters  have  come 
to  recognize  these  national  differences  and  have  learned 
to  throw  protective  measures  about  the  children  of  some 
foreigners  much  earlier  than  would  be  necessary  for  our 
own  American  youths. 

The  physical  background  of  childhood  is  a  determining 
factor  in  timing  the  developmental  processes.  A  childhood 
that  has  been  vigorous  and  healthful,  that  has  been  fur- 
nished with  nutritious  food,  abundance  of  water  and  of 
fresh  air,  absence  of  undue  nervous  strain,  and  plenty  ot 


42  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

sleep  as  its  daily  lot  has  fortified  itself  against  many  of  the 
misfortunes  attendant  upon  changes  at  this  period.  Fur- 
thermore, such  childhood  is  the  best  forerunner  of  normal 
development  out  of  childhood's  estate.  Unfortified  thus, 
the  body,  heavily  loaded  with  the  strain  of  building  new 
tissue,  developing  new  organs,  and  making  new  adjust- 
ments, finds  its  resources  of  nerve  strength  too  severely 
taxed;  and,  instead  of  passing  naturally  through  this  expe- 
rience and  rapidly  getting  the  new  life  established,  the 
physical  organism  yields  a  nervous,  irritable,  and  capri- 
cious personality. 

When  one  finds  such  conditions  existing  among  one's 
pupils  one  may  suspect  the  cause  as  lying  back  in  child- 
hood. At  least  that  may  be  the  cause.  The  corrective  is 
to  counteract  such  bad  early  living  by  encouraging  nor- 
mal living,  exercise,  correct  diet,  and  rest,  and  by  getting 
the  right  bodily  ideals  established.  One  may  find  that  for 
such  persons  the  most  religious  service  that  can  be  ren- 
dered is  in  the  nature  of  corrective  physical  living.  For, 
strange  as  it  may  seem,  the  relation  between  irritability, 
nervousness,  and  caprice,  on  the  one  hand,  and  true.  Christ- 
like living,  on  the  other,  is  physical,  and  the  method  of 
self-control  and  of  spiritual  progress  is  in  a  large  part 
through  the  physical  substratum. 

If  the  relation  between  health  and  happiness  is  so  inti- 
mate, what  can  one  say  of  the  foolish  excesses  permitted 
those  who  are  in  the  process  of  making  these  physical 
changes?  Throughout  our  land  the  high  schools  lay 
a  heavy  tax  upon  the  vitality  of  youth,  yet  not  too 
heavy  if  otherwise  the  life  is  wholesome.  But  in  very 
many  cases  there  is  added  to  or  permitted  to  be  added  to 
this  tax  the  drain  of  music  lessons,  of  dancing,  of  parties 
and  socials,  or  of  the  highly  stimulating  "movies,"  until 
nature  rebels.  If  the  crisis  is  to  be  passed  successfully,  if 
the  individual  is  to  be  given  a  fair  chance  to  mature  into  a 
sound,  healthy  person,  if  his  natural  enthusiasms  are  not 
to  be  allowed  to  undermine  his  vitality,  he  must  be  safe- 


THE  SIGNIFICANCE  OF  SEX  DEVELOPMENT     43 

guarded  during  just  these  years.  The  opportunities  for 
vigorous  outdoor  living  must  be  multiplied,  the  risks  of 
overstimulation  of  the  emotions  and  of  the  nerve  fatigue 
must  be  reduced  to  a  minimum,  the  diet  must  be  whole- 
some, and  rest  abundant.  Particularly  must  the  physical 
processes  of  elimination  function  freely,  lest  the  poisons  tax 
too  severely  the  already  overstrained  organism.  Least  of 
all  should  youth  be  expected  spontaneously  to  care  for 
itself.  It  feels  the  thrill  of  a  new  life  and  of  superabundant 
energy.  The  parent,  by  wise  counsel  and  restraint,  and  the 
teacher,  by  class  comradeship  and  counsel,  must  be  will 
and  brains  for  growing  youth. 

For,  after  all,  normality  and  health  are  the  desirable 
objectives  during  these  years.  Early  maturing  has  the  dis- 
advantage of  throwing  the  maturing  body  into  risks  before 
mind  and  will  have  had  time  to  fortify  themselves;  while 
a  greatly  delayed  maturing  of  the  body  embarrasses  its 
subject  by  leaving  him  childish  when  others  of  his  years 
have  passed  on.  These  changes  cannot  be  willed  to  suit 
one's  prejudices,  but  there  can  be  provided  a  wholesome  life 
that  will  predispose  the  individual  to  normality  both  as  to 
time  of  the  inception  of  puberty  and  as  to  the  development 
of  the  body  during  these  trying  years. 

7.  Irradiations  of  sex.  There  is  a  growing  conviction 
that  changes  of  a  physical  nature  have  influences  far  beyond 
the  usual  belief.  For  instance,  the  high  emotionalism 
ensuing  upon  adolescence  is  undoubtedly  due  directly  to 
this  cause.  With  this  and  coupled  with  the  wider  social 
horizon  comes  the  romanticizing  of  youth.  The  world  is 
made  anew.  Adolescence  is  a  rebirth  of  the  individual,  and 
in  this  rebirth  the  prosaic  life  of  the  past  takes  on  new  and 
beautiful  coloring.  Not  only  is  the  opposite  sex  endowed 
with  qualities  never  before  discovered,  but  nature  not  infre- 
quently is  seen  through  new  eyes.  There  is  a  beauty  in 
the  world  not  seen  before.  The  quickening  of  the  senses 
and  the  expansion  of  intellectual  powers  likewise  arise 
from  the  newly  developed  life.    A  meaningfulness  is  found 


44  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

such  as  was  absent  in  the  objective  life  of  childhood,  and 
self  becomes  introspective.  Moral  judgments  are  sharpened*. 
Religion,  already  discovered,  finds  new  depths  and  heights. 

The  age  of  conversion,  or,  better,  the  times  of  religious 
awakening,  come  just  in  these  years,  making  adolescence 
the  fruitful  period  for  the  religious  leader.  And  the  com- 
mingling of  the  various  ideals  and  emotions  is  so  intricate 
that  many  a  youth  is  at  a  loss  to  know  just  where  beauty 
or  truth  or  religion  or  love  separate  themselves  from  one 
another. 

Besides  keeping  the  body  strong  and  well,  the  great  end 
to  be  sought  by  every  lover  of  youth  should  be  to  keep  the 
emotions  ana  the  mind  clean  through  a  variety  of  whole- 
some objective  interests.  Athletics,  well-organized  and 
wholesome  fun,  activities  of  service,  all  come  in  for  a 
share  in  the  program.  Right  ideas  and  right  ideals  toward 
self,  toward  others,  and  toward  God  fortify  against  many 
temptations  and  point  the  way  toward  noble  living.  But 
these  ideals,  backed  by  good  health  and  abundance  of  whole- 
some mental,  social,  and  physical  interests,  are  doubly 
potential.  At  this  age  the  worst  foes  to  clean  living  and  to 
religion  are  bad  mental  imagery,  a  devitalized  body,  and  an 
introspective  or  self-centered  life. 

Questions 

1.  Why  is  a  thorough  knowledge  of  sex  necessary  to  the 
leader  of  youth? 

2.  Why  are  stimulants,  narcotics,  or  general  unhealthy 
conditions  especially  disadvantageous  just  as  adolescence  is 
entered  upon? 

3.  What  characteristic  changes  take  place  at  the  dawn 
of  puberty?  How  does  sex  development  differ  with  boys  and 
girls? 

4.  Why  do  girls  have  fewer  gangs  than  boys? 

5.  Is  good  health  an  objective  toward  which  a  Sunday- 
school  teacher  should  guide  his  class?  Give  some  good 
reasons  for  your  answers. 


THE   SIGNIFICANCE  OF  SEX  DEVELOPMENT     45 

6.  How  do  irradiations  of  sex  manifest  themselves  at 
this  age? 

Observation 

Note  the  relations  of  boys  and  girls  of  intermediate  age; 
also  of  senior  age.  Which  group  is  shy  and  embarrassed  in 
the  presence  of  the  opposite  sex?  In  which  group  do  the 
sexes  mix  best?  Are  groups  or  individuals  of  the  opposite 
sex  sought? 


CHAPTER  IV 
INDIVIDUAL  DIFFERENCES 

A  TEACHER  of  pupils  of  the  teen  years  complained  that 
although  he  knew  the  characteristics  of  the  adolescent  boy 
he  did  not  know  the  characteristics  of  any  member  of  his 
class.  They  were  all  so  different  from  each  other  that 
no  generalization,  he  contended,  fitted  any  of  them.  This 
is  the  truth  that  all  are  sooner  or  later  to  discover.  One 
who  possesses  a  knowledge  of  the  life  and  peculiarities  of 
these  years  is  thereby  better  fitted  to  deal  with  youth  than 
one  who,  unacquainted  with  these  facts,  goes  blindly  at  the 
task.  But  ere  long  he  will  find  that,  in  addition  to  his 
general  knowledge,  he  will  have  to  master  a  knowledge  of 
the  peculiarities  of  each  boy  or  each  girl.  Generalizations 
as  to  characteristics  fit  the  individual  much  as  a  suit  of 
clothes  made  to  the  dimensions  of  the  "average"  boy  of 
fourteen  fits  the  particular  fourteen-year-old  in  your  home 
or  in  your  neighbor's.  It  is  too  big  in  spots,  too  small  in 
others,  and  altogether  out  of  harmony  with  the  figure  that 
you  are  trying  to  clothe.  It  is  well,  therefore,  to  take  time 
to  note  in  what  some  of  these  individual  differences  consist 
and  to  anticipate,  so  far  as  possible,  the  experiences  one 
must  meet  as  he  faces  the  six  to  ten  pupils  who  will  make 
up  his  class. 

1.  Varieties  in  growtli.  The  first  marked  difference 
among  pupils  is  the  variation  in  growth.  Somewhere  be- 
tween the  eleventh  and  fifteenth  years  each  normal  boy 
goes  through  a  period  of  rapid  physical  development.  This 
well-knov/ii  fact  may  be  looked  for  in  the  life  of  every 
adolescent.  Frequently  it  is  overlooked  that  the  precise  age 
at  which  the  boy  or  girl  will  "shoot  up  like  a  bean  pole" 
varies   much   with   different   individuals.     Here   is   a   boy 

46 


INDIVIDUAL  DIFFERENCES  47 

who  begins  his  rapid  growth  at  eleven,  pauses  at  twelve, 
then  takes  a  new  start  and  keeps  on  growing,  attaining  his 
mature  height  at  sixteen.  Another  in  the  same  class  does 
not  begin  his  phenomenal  "sky-rocketing"  until  his  thir- 
teenth year,  then,  by  gigantic  effort,  overtakes  his  fellow 
member  at  fifteen,  continuing  his  upward  towering  until 
his  eighteenth  or  nineteenth  year.  All  sorts  of  variations 
as  to  bodily  growth  are  found  in  these  years.  The  result 
is  that  a  group  of  thirteen-  or  fourteen-year-old  boys  or 
girls  standing  in  a  row  form  a  very  irregular  "sky-line." 

One  consequence  of  the  variations  under  consideration  is 
to  put  the  individual  in  an  anomalous  light  before  his 
elders.  One  is  "grown  up"  by  appearance,  yet  may  be  only 
a  boy  in  age  and  in  his  own  estimate  of  himself.  Another, 
delayed  in  bodily  development,  is  by  his  experience  a  man. 
Those  who  are  older  can  quickly  realize  the  status  of  the 
members  of  their  classes  so  as  not  to  be  deceived  by  mere 
size  alone;  but  it  is  another  matter  to  help  the  individual 
to  adjust  himself  to  these  trying  years  of  bodily  expan- 
sion. His  companions  see  something  "awfully  funny"  in  his 
elongated  frame,  in  his  awkward  hands  and  feet.  He  be- 
comes "Skinny"  or  "Bones"  or  "Spike"  and,  while  attempt- 
ing to  accept  the  verdict  of  the  group  good-naturedly, 
inwardly  wonders  why  he  is  not  like  other  boys  of  his 
years. 

The  quick  rounding  out  of  the  figures  of  the  girls  con- 
ceals some  of  these  discrepancies,  but  they  are  no  more 
alike  in  bodily  growth  than  are  their  brothers.  Here  too 
we  must  watch  against  hasty  judgment  based  upon  size. 
The  biggest  girl  in  the  class  may  not  be  the  most  mature 
nor  the  most  womanly.  She  may  be  the  dullest,  the  most 
childish,  the  least  experienced.  She  may  need  more  cau- 
tious handling,  more  sympathy,  than  her  slowly  growing 
neighbor  who  has  experienced  no  sudden  transition  from 
childhood  to  adult  proportions. 

2.  Variations  in  maturity.  Of  deeper  significance, 
however,  than  mere  bodily  growth  is  the  amount  of  ma- 


48  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

turity,  of  sex  development,  encountered  among  pupils.  One 
matures  early,  another  late,  a  difference  of  as  much  as 
four  to  five  years  being  noticed  in  the  inception  of  the 
process.  As  a  physiological  fact  alone  this  difference  is 
significant.  As  one  recalls  the  amount  of  curiosity  aroused 
by  the  change  from  childhood  to  youth,  the  temptations  to 
satisfy  the  curiosity  in  doubtful  ways,  and  to  seek  informa- 
tion from  questionable  sources,  it  becomes  apparent  that 
it  does  matter  tremendously  whether  maturity  comes  early, 
in  the  middle  period,  or  late. 

But,  aside  from  the  mere  physical  fact  of  maturity,  this 
process  affects  the  whole  range  of  mental  life.  Physical 
maturing  is  the  basis  of  mental  maturing,  and  we  may 
expect  the  two  to  go  hand  in  hand.  Is  it  not  possible 
that  one  overlooks  an  important  mental  difference  when 
one  ignores  progress  in  the  physical  maturity  of  one's 
pupils?  How  can  one  escape  the  conviction  that  the  little 
boy  among  those  who  have  matured  is  out  of  place  or, 
at  any  rate,  must  receive  different  treatment  from  the 
more  advanced?  Certainly,  as  these  physical  causes  of 
difference  among  our  pupils  are  discovered,  one  is  less 
inclined  to  expect  the  same  results  from  each,  readier 
to  be  charitable  toward  those  whose  variations  are  not 
of  their  own  choosing.  Perhaps  as  one  learns  to  know 
the  inner  life  of  one's  pupils  one  will  be  able  the  better 
to  fit  his  teaching  and  leadership  to  their  individual  needs, 
to  discover  the  developing  personality,  and  to  think  less  in 
"mass"  terms  of  the  class. 

3.  Variations  in  native  capacity.  No  one  can  be  long 
with  growing  youths  without  becoming  conscious  of  native 
differences  in  capacity.  Supposing  all  to  be  advanced 
enough  to  be  considered  normal  in  their  mental  attain- 
ments, still  wide  variations  occur.  Of  the  subnormal  and 
mentally  deficient  it  need  only  be  said  that  they  require 
special  consideration  and  such  grouping  with  others  of 
their  kind  as  to  prevent  their  acting  as  a  drag  upon  the 
class,  on  the  one  hand,  and,  on  the  other,  to  give  them  every 


INDIVIDUAL  DIFFERENCES  49 

possible  attention  and  advantage.  But  normal  pupils  are 
bright,  mediocre,  or  dull,  and  the  teacher  must  take  recog- 
nition of  these  differences.  The  brighter  and  more  for- 
ward are  apt  to  monopolize  attention  and  time.  They  are 
attractive  and  respond  so  quickly  to  teaching  as  to  flatter 
conceit.  On  the  other  hand,  the  dull  are  so  slow  as  to  tax 
most  severely  his  patience.  Yet  the  dull  may  be,  after  all, 
only  slow  methodical  minds,  who  do  not  "flash"  but  who  by 
slow  degrees  attain  such  perfection  as  may  be  desired. 
Regardless  of  the  causes  of  dullness,  unless  they  are  remov- 
able through  better  nourishment  or  physical  treatment, 
these  persons  deserve  one's  best  skill,  lest  an  injustice  be 
done  them.  The  difficulty  of  the  situation  arises  and 
becomes  acute  as  one  tries  to  hold  the  attention  of  the 
brighter  minds  while  waiting  and  encouraging  the  mental 
processes  of  those  who  are  slow.  To  recognize  these  dif- 
ferences and  to  attempt  intelligently  to  meet  the  needs  of 
each  are  the  beginnings  of  real  success  in  teaching. 

4.  The  timid  pupil.  Nearly  akin  to  what  has  just  been 
discussed  is  the  art  of  drawing  out  the  timid  pupil;  for, 
as  everyone  has  discovered,  some  pupils  are  timid.  They 
may  be  bright  or  they  may  be  dull,  they  may  be  the  older 
members  of  the  class,  or  they  may  be  the  younger.  Their 
timidity  may  be  constitutional  or  it  may  have  been  in- 
duced by  too  great  repression  at  home  or  in  school.  What- 
ever the  cause,  there  they  are  to  be  taught;  and  as  good 
teaching  demands  expression  from  the  pupil,  these  are 
often  neglected  for  those  more  ready  to  answer  questions 
or  to  take  up  the  discussion  and  carry  it  forward.  Here, 
again,  is  demanded  the  greatest  skill,  coupled  with  pro- 
found sympathy.  The  knowing  teacher  will  discover  ways 
of  opening  the  closed  lips,  stimulating  the  mind  to  self- 
expression,  and,  by  a  look  or  a  smile,  by  a  word  of  encour- 
agement or  a  tactful  question,  will  overcome  self-conscious- 
ness and  make  easy  the  difficult  process  of  social  living  and 
speaking. 

5.  Discovering     and     utilizing     capacity.     The     alert 


50  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

teacher  will  also  discover  latent  talents  among  his  pupils 
which  exhibit  inner  differences  of  the  mind.  Aside  from 
the  lesson  of  Sunday  the  pupils  will  seek  outlet  for  their 
energies  in  social,  athletic,  and  other  forms  of  activity  and 
cooperation.  Leaders  will  be  in  demand,  though  all  cannot 
lead.  Soon  from  among  the  number  will  be  found  "some 
who  follow  and  some  who  command,  though  all  be  made  of 
clay."  This  indicates  differences  in  initiative  in  the  group, 
and  it  may  be  discovered  that  those  who  are  less  glib  in 
the  recitation  are  the  sturdier  in  executive  ability,  while 
the  timid  in  the  presence  of  others  may  show  real  initiative 
in  carrying  out  the  plans  of  the  class.  The  midweek 
activities — the  hikes,  the  games,  the  "club  meetings,"  the 
socials, — become  the  opportunities  for  the  teacher  not  alone 
to  discover  differences  but  to  utilize  the  varying  abilities 
displayed.  Those  who  are  suggestible  may  work  under  di- 
rection, while  those  who  are  original  in  their  thinking 
processes  may  plan  better  than  they  can  execute.  Those 
who  can  execute  may  be  poor  leaders  and  deficient  in  initia- 
tive but  able  to  "put  things  across"  with  speed  and 
accuracy. 

During  these  very  years,  when  no  boy  or  girl  truly 
knows  himself,  when  the  new  life  forces  are  surging  up, 
unused  and  untamed,  unrecognized  by  their  possessor  least 
of  all,  it  is  the  glorious  opportunity  of  the  Sunday-school 
leader  to  discover  the  youth  to  himself,  to  strengthen  the 
weak  spots  in  his  make-up,  to  draw  out  the  best  within 
him,  and  to  be  in  such  close  sympathy  that  the  teacher 
becomes  the  youth's  second  self.  All  this  is  delightful  but 
possible  only  when  he  studies  these  individual  peculiarities, 
learns  to  appreciate  them  and  to  discover  the  means  of 
setting  the  new  personality  right  in  its  own  eyes  and  in 
the  eyes  of  the  class. 

6.  Differences  due  to  home  culture.  Differences  thus 
far  observed  have  their  sources  largely,  though  not  entirely. 
In  the  natural  endowment  of  the  individual.  Other  varia- 
tions   demand   attention — variations    that    arise    from    the 


INDIVIDUAL  DIFFERENCES  51 

environment  in  which  the  pupil's  life  is  cast.  The  group 
differences  that  grow  out  of  social  or  economic  stratifica- 
tions will  be  discussed  later,  but  now  one  should  look  at 
certain  attitudes  and  opinions  that  already  are  found  in 
pronounced  forms  in  the  minds  of  some. 

Here,  for  instance,  is  a  class  of  six  girls,  all  of  about 
the  same  age,  graded  as  carefully  as  at  the  high  school. 
One  comes  from  a  home  in  which  the  religious  atmosphere 
is  very  manifest  yet  very  natural;  others  come  from  homes 
of  indifferent  religious  interest;  while  the  last  is  from  a 
home  totally  unfriendly  to  the  church  and  to  religion. 
These  differences  manifest  themselves  at  once  in  the  class 
work.  The  attitude  of  the  first  pupil  is  sympathetic  and 
full  of  understanding.  Her  mind  is  stored  with  religious 
phrases  and  Biblical  imagery.  The  whole  background  of 
her  experience  predisposes  her  to  faithful,  intelligent  work 
and  to  a  ready  understanding  of  the  teacher's  viewpoint. 
How  different  is  the  last  pupil  from  the  one  just  described! 
Her  whole  past  contributes  little,  if  anything,  to  her  reli- 
gious outlook,  certainly  nothing  positive  and  helpful. 

Now,  such  sharp  contrasts  are  not  likely  to  occur  in  the 
same  class.  But  one  must  ever  be  on  the  lookout  to  see 
what  progress  the  pupils  have  made  in  religious  growth 
and  appreciation.  It  is  not  a  question  of  having  at  their 
tongue  tips  so  much  Biblical  information,  good  as  that 
may  seem;  it  is,  rather,  to  discover  how  far  their  home  and 
school  life,  their  play  and  social  relations  have  predisposed 
them  favorably  and  intelligently  toward  the  work  we  are 
to  do.  Of  course,  the  least  likely  are  the  very  ones  to 
demand  sympathy  and  help,  but  that  is  not  the  question 
now.  First  of  all,  in  justice  to  the  class  and  to  himself, 
the  teacher  must  know  his  pupils — their  inner  attitudes, 
prejudices,  and  mental  imagery.  And  here  are  found  as 
great  individual  divergencies  as  at  any  one  point  in  all 
one's  seeking.  No  wonder  there  is  blundering  when  it  is 
insisted  that  the  same  instruction,  measured  out  in  the 
same  fashion,  with  no  recognition  of  these  differences,  is 


52  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

ample  for  the  task.  To  assume  knowledge  that  has  never 
been  acquired,  emotions  that  have  never  been  felt,  sym- 
pathies that  have  not  arisen,  insight  that  has  been  impos- 
sible, and  attitudes  toward  God  and  man  that  have  never 
been  cultivated  is  fatal  to  good  teaching. 

What  we  need  is  to  take  stock  of  each  pupil,  to  learn 
his  capacities,  discover  his  peculiarities,  awaken  his  latent 
talents,  arouse  his  emotions,  create  for  him  situations  that 
shall  call  forth  correct  moral  attitudes,  environ  him  with 
right  stimulations,  open  to  him  the  channels  of  knowledge, 
and  create  within  him  noble  desires. 

Too  long  have  these  youthful  pupils  been  "just  boys  and 
girls."  Now  one  must  see  that  they  are  differing  personali- 
ties, demanding  the  keenest  understanding  one  possesses 
and  insisting  upon  thoroughgoing  companionship.  Such  un- 
derstanding and  such  companionship  can  come  only  as  they 
are  known  as  individuals. 

Questions 

1.  Note  differences  in  size  and  in  appearance  of  maturity 
of  four  or  five  boys  or  girls  of  the  same  age.  Is  the  largest 
the  most  mature?    Does  size  indicate  leadership? 

2.  How  would  you  treat  the  brightest  pupil?  Encourage 
him?  Set  him  to  work?  Ignore  him  in  order  to  help  the 
duller  ones? 

3.  Is  timidity  a  sign  of  dullness?  of  brightness?  of  self- 
consciousness?   How  may  the  timid  pupil  be  helped? 

Observation 

Observe  a  teacher  with  his  class  to  see:  (1)  how  he 
handles  the  timid  and  dull  pupil;  (2)  whether  the  bright 
pupils  monopolize  his  attention;  (3)  if  each  pupil  finds 
himself  a  part  of  the  group  under  instruction. 


CHAPTER  V 
GROUP    DIFFERENCES 

The  old  adage  "Birds  of  a  feather  flock  together"  fur- 
nishes a  fruitful  text  for  the  discussion  of  certain  phases 
of  the  lives  of  the  intermediate-senior  pupils.  It  has 
seemed  wise  to  point  out  some  of  the  individual  differences 
likely  to  be  met  in  association  with  these  young  people. 
It  is  now  time  to  note  certain  group  differences  that  must 
be  faced  if  you  would  endeavor  to  classify  these  same  pupils. 

1.  Grouping  by  ages.  To  begin  with,  it  may  be  said 
that  where  the  size  of  the  school  seems  to  forbid  close 
grading  there  must  be  such  easy  and  natural  assembling 
of  pupils  as  will  not  completely  defeat  the  ends  of  good 
teaching.  Schools  still  exist  which  try  the  unfortunate 
practice  of  gathering  all  boys  between  twelve  and  seven- 
teen into  one  class,  while  girls  of  the  same  ages  form 
another.  Obviously  this  range  of  development  is  alto- 
gether too  great  to  promise  much  comity  of  interest.  Even 
though  division  seems  to  reduce  the  class  to  small  propor- 
tions, it  is  better  to  put  all  those  from  twelve  to  fourteen 
into  one  class,  those  from  fifteen  to  seventeen  into  another, 
making  four  classes  in  the  place  of  the  two. 

If  the  teachers  of  these  smaller  groups  will  study  the 
interests  of  each  class,  will  attempt  to  select  lessons  fitted 
to  the  intellectual  development  of  its  members,  and  will 
devise  midweek  activities  suited  to  their  tastes,  a  growth 
in  numbers  should  presently  be  found,  more  than  com- 
pensating for  the  division.  For  it  must  ever  be  kept  in 
mind  that  during  just  these  years  life  is  going  forward 
with  amazing  rapidity,  and  the  older  group  of  boys  is  far 
beyond  those  of  the  younger  age.  It  is  not  impossible  that 
the  large  class  made  up  of  miscellaneous  ages  from  twelve 

53 


54  LEADERS    OP   YOUTH 

to  seventeen  is  stagnant  in  its  growth  for  the  very  reason 
that  the  teacher  is  attempting  to  do  what  is  obviously 
Impossible — fit  his  choice  of  lesson  material  and  his  method 
of  teaching  to  too  wide  a  range  of  mental  powers. 

A  still  further  differentiation  found  most  acceptable  is 
to  group  two  years  together.  Every  such  step  comes  closer 
to  the  ideal  of  a  thoroughly  graded  school,  which,  after 
all,  means  only  a  school  that  is  honestly  trying  to  pro- 
vide each  pupil  with  what  is  best  fitted  to  his  needs.  But, 
in  general,  the  self-evident  fact  remains  that  between 
these  two  extreme  ages  there  are  at  least  two  separate 
groups  quite  distinct  from  each  other.  Nor  need  be 
repeated  again  the  peculiar  characteristics  of  each  group; 
the  contrast  most  obvious  is  the  wider  range  of  interests 
and  the  greater  acquirement  of  self-direction  in  the  older 
l^oys  and  girls.  For  everything  that  has  been  said  upon 
this  point  concerning  boys  is  equally  true  regarding  girls. 

2.  Sex  grouping.  A  second  outstanding  group  differ- 
ence is  determined  by  growing  sex-consciousness.  Without 
repeating  the  details  of  sex  differences  arising  during  these 
years,  manifesting  themselves  in  many  ways,  let  it  be 
noted  that  here  there  is  every  reason  for  keeping  boys 
and  girls  apart  in  their  class  work,  and  no  valid  reason 
for  ever  putting  them  together.  It  is  not  only  to  satisfy 
the  natural  inclination  of  the  sexes  to  draw  apart  that  such 
division  is  urged  but  in  order  that  personal  problems  aris- 
ing from  the  new  social  experiences  may  be  given  full, 
sympathetic,  and  frank  discussion. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  commingling  of  the  pupils  in 
wholesome  recreative  and  philanthropic  activities  is  quite 
as  important  for  their  social  evolution  as  is  their  separa- 
tion for  class  instruction.  For,  after  all,  as  one  writer 
has  wisely  observed,  God  has  ordered  that  we  live  in  fami- 
lies, and  not  in  monasteries.  But  even  here,  in  their  recrea- 
tive life,  we  shall  find  the  common  interests  of  boys  with 
other  boys  and  of  girls  with  other  girls  more  prevalent 
than  those  which  draw  the  groups  together. 


GROUP  DIFFERENCES  55 

3.  The  high-school  group.  Other  groupings  that  we 
must  observe  arise  from  the  nature  of  our  social  structure 
— perhaps  we  should  say,  rest  in  our  economic  fabric  rather 
than  in  the  pupils  themselves.  Attention  has  already  been 
called  to  the  two  groups — those  who  go  to  school  and  those 
who  labor,  whose  native  interests  are  alike  but  whose 
acquired  interests  have  diverged  widely.  It  is  necessary  to 
look  more  closely  at  these  two  classes. 

The  first  distinction  noted  is  the  superior  ability  of  the 
high-school  boy  or  girl  in  handling  the  printed  page.  Con- 
stant practice  in  reading  and  daily  familiarity  with  books 
make  words,  printed  or  written,  easily  understood  symbols 
of  thought.  To  read  aloud  in  class  causes  no  embarrass- 
ment; to  study  the  lesson  at  home  is  no  difficult  task, 
albeit  sometimes  a  reluctant  one.  To  seek  outside  informa- 
tion from  encyclopaedia  or  reference  books  is  not  impossible, 
either  because  of  the  labor  involved  in  reading  or  because  of 
ignorance   of  how   to   use   such   helps. 

Furthermore,  the  high-school  student  is  accustomed  to  the 
routine  of  class  work,  is  every  day  called  upon  to  recite  and 
to  express  his  opinion,  and  has  by  this  means  gained  confi- 
dence. Likewise,  this  practice  has  given  him  certain 
facility  of  utterance  not  possessed  by  his  working  comrade. 
All  these  things  put  those  who  are  pursuing  their  educa- 
tional tasks  at  an  advantage.  Is  it  not  likely  that  school, 
through  its  teaching  of  history  and  of  literature,  has  given 
these  a  wider  outlook  and  increased  their  stock  of  knowl- 
edge, so  that  references  to  passing  events,  to  familiar  quota- 
tions, to  well-known  historical  personages,  become  at  once 
understood  and  appreciated?  In  other  words,  the  technique 
of  study  and  of  recitation,  together  with  the  results  of  such 
practice,  lie  ready  to  be  utilized  by  the  Sunday-school 
teacher. 

It  must  be  still  further  recalled  that  these  students  come 
in  large  part  from  homes  of  sufficient  refinement  to  value 
culture  and  to  plan  for  the  educational  welfare  of  their 
children.     No  doubt  many  others  would  do  the  same  did 


56  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

economic  necessity  not  compel  otherwise.  The  fact  is, 
however,  that  high-school  students  are  a  picked  lot  who 
continue  their  studies  because  their  parents  value  school- 
ing. This  means  that  these  boys  and  girls  have  the  advan- 
tage over  the  working  group  in  the  environment  of  their 
homes.  And  as  only  a  part  of  the  student  life  is  found 
in  our  Sunday  schools,  we  may  presume  that  this  portion 
comes  from  homes  above  the  average  in  religious  culture. 

It  is  safe  to  conclude,  then,  that  the  high-school  group 
is  made  up  of  those  who  have  the  technique  of  education, 
know  how  to  study  and  how  to  recite,  and  have  the  further 
advantage  in  the  home  of  a  constant  environment  of  cul- 
tured and  probably  religiously  inclined  parents.  If  the 
Sunday  school  is  to  become  a  real  school,  as  is  so  often 
repeated,  then  these  will  find  themselves  readily  adap- 
table to  its  ways,  while  the  teachers  of  these  students  will 
find  their  own  work  greatly  lightened  by  the  preparation 
of  their  students. 

4.  The  employed  group.  The  advantages,  however,  are 
not  all  on  the  side  of  the  students.  Business  has  its  dis- 
ciplines too,  and  religion  is  something  more  than  books. 
First  comes  the  sense  of  reality  which  is  too  frequently 
absent  from  high-school  work.  The  boy  or  girl  who  has 
stepped  out  to  earn  a  living  is  no  longer  haunted  with  the 
thought  that  he  or  she  is  getting  ready  to  live;  life  is 
being  lived  every  day,  and  the  things  that  are  being  done 
and  are  to  be  learned  are  vital  things — vital  to  one's  self- 
support  and  to  one's  advancement.  Moreover,  life  is  being 
lived  in  conjunction  with  other  human  beings,  in  conse- 
quence of  which  moral  and  religious  problems  possess  a 
power  lacking  to  those  whose  lives  are  more  or  less 
secluded. 

Again,  life  by  these  youths  is  being  passed  in  groups, 
most  of  whose  members  are  adults,  with  whose  viewpoints 
they  are  brought  daily  into  contact,  whose  standards  of 
moral  and  personal  living  are  ever  vividly  before  them. 
No  one  who  has  dealt  with  the  street  urchin  or  with  those 


GROUP  DIFFERENCES  57 

whose  lives  have  been  cast  where  wit  is  necessary  to  suc- 
cess need  be  told  that  these  boys  and  girls  are  old  for  their 
years,  able  to  "shift  for  themselves,"  before  the  age  of  one 
whose  life  has  been  determined  for  him.  What  they  lack  in 
breadth  as  compared  with  their  student  friends  they  fre- 
quently compensate  for  in  quickness  of  perception  and  in 
penetration  beyond  the  artificial  and  the  unreal. 

5.  Adjusting  the  department  to  tliese  groups.  Keep- 
ing in  mind  that  all  shades  of  differences  exist  in  the  mem- 
bers of  each  group,  what  is  the  worker  with  intermediates 
or  seniors  to  do?  How  far  shall  he  take  recognition  of 
these  group  differences,  wrought  out  of  our  economic  life? 

Inasmuch  as  each  group  has  its  own  interests  and  its 
own  kind  of  life,  it  would  seem  but  wise  to  separate  the 
groups  for  teaching  as  much  as  possible.  One  advantage 
of  such  separation  is  better  selection  of  lesson  material  to 
fit  the  needs  of  the  group.  Such  selection  comes  in  two 
directions:  first,  in  the  choice  of  textbooks  that  are  verbally 
adapted  to  the  group  it  has  been  found  that  the  working 
boy  requires  a  more  restricted  vocabulary  and  a  narrower 
range  of  historical  and  literary  allusions;  secondly,  in  the 
topics  and  subjects  for  study  one  needs  to  consider  the 
moral  and  religious  atmosphere  of  the  working  group  and 
to  seek  such  material  as  shall  compel  interest  and  stimu- 
late real  thinking.  Lessons  prepared  for  high-school  stu- 
dents are  not  wisely  adapted  to  the  needs  of  those  whose 
days  are  spent  in  acquiring  not  knowledge  but  primarily 
wealth.  Just  as  truly  as  the  high  schools  of  our  land  have 
discovered  that  the  curriculum  must  be  fitted  to  the  need 
of  groups  among  their  student  bodies,  so  in  these  depart- 
ments such  lesson  material  must  be  found  as  shall 
meet  the  requirements,  intellectual  and  religious,  of  the 
students. 

A  second  advantage  in  such  segregation  of  these  groups 
is  found  in  the  common  interests  of  those  in  the  same 
group  and  the  unlike  interests  of  industrial  and  school 
pupils.    Clothing,  speech,  free  time  for  recreation,  and  types 


58  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

of  "good  times"  are  likely  to  vary  to  an  extent  that  would 
defeat  attempts  to  coalesce  the  groups. 

The  objection  most  often  raised  to  such  segregation  pro- 
gram is  that  it  tends  to  increase  still  further  the  social 
cleavage  of  our  land.  It  is  essentially  undemocratic.  The 
better  plan,  say  such  critics,  is  to  throw  those  of  diverse 
social  or  economic  strata  together,  thus  cementing  the 
social  body  more  firmly.  Unfortunately,  it  is  necessary  here 
to  meet  a  condition,  as  one  of  our  Presidents  said  of  states- 
manship, rather  than  a  theory.  What  is  endeavored  in 
these  groupings  is  to  give  each  group  a  fair  and  an  equal 
chance.  The  Sunday  school  cannot  do  the  work  of  the 
public  school,  nor  is  it  responsible  for  the  intellectual  short- 
comings of  some  nor  for  the  social  precocity  of  others. 
Furthermore,  one  has  still  to  remember  that  the  depart- 
ment as  a  whole  is  to  function  as  well  as  are  the  classes; 
and  in  its  functioning,  in  its  worship,  its  recreation,  its 
service  for  others,  is  found  a  common  footing  of  reverence, 
play,  and  service,  which  shall  bind  all  elements  into  one 
Christian  whole.  Here  divergent  interests  and  varying 
capabilities  will  be  brought  together,  each  contributing  to 
the  welfare  of  all. 

Perhaps  hitherto  too  much  attention  has  been  paid  to  the 
high-school  students  in  the  Sunday  school,  providing  les- 
sons readily  assimilable  by  them,  thus  neglecting  the  very 
elements  for  which  the  foregoing  critics  most  contend.  Is 
it  not  possible  that  among  other  causes  of  the  neglect  of 
Sunday  school  by  working  boys  and  girls  one  is  to  be  found 
in  the  school's  negligence  to  meet  their  needs,  to  recog- 
nize their  own  problems,  and  to  discover  their  genuine 
interests?  It  is  essential,  therefore,  to  study  each  group 
as  a  group,  perceive  its  interests,  know  its  environment, 
analyze  for  it  its  life,  and  be  able  to  minister  to  its  needs. 

6.  The  rural  boy  and  girl.  A  still  further  group  de- 
manding attention  is  made  up  of  the  youths  who  remain 
on  the  farm.  Many  farmers'  sons  and  daughters  during 
these  years  leave  the  homes  to  make  up  the  groups  already 


GROUP  DIFFERENCES  59 

considered.  Some  come  to  the  city  to  study,  taking  advan- 
tage of  the  better  educational  facilities  there  found.  Others 
seek  employment  in  the  industrial  centers,  in  factories, 
stores,  or  oflEices.  But  the  larger  number  are  still  found  on 
the  farms.  These  vary  in  their  educational  progress  all 
the  way  from  the  grades  up  to  the  students  in  the  county 
high  schools  or  in  the  near-by  city  schools  or  academies. 

Once  again  let  it  be  noted  that  these  boys  and  girls  have 
the  same  natural  interests  as  their  brothers  and  sisters 
in  the  cities.  Differences  arise  entirely  from  their  environ- 
ment. On  the  one  hand,  as  a  w^hole  they  are  less  advanced 
in  technical  education,  due  to  the  poverty  of  educational 
advantages  in  the  rural  sections.  Their  social  horizon  is 
also  more  restricted.  The  opportunities  for  social  fellow- 
ship, for  organized  play  and  recreation,  are  much  less 
frequent.  Further,  the  ever-repeated  revival  has  put  a  pre- 
mium upon  certain  emotional  types  of  religion  which  dis- 
count the  value  of  religious  education,  and  these  boys  and 
girls  are  already  becoming  susceptible  to  such  attitudes. 
The  Sunday  school  has  not  taken  such  deep  hold  in  rural 
as  in  urban  life. 

On  the  other  hand,  it  should  be  said  that  rural  religion 
is  vital  even  where  its  conservatism  discourages  scholar- 
ship; and  the  family  is  still  central  in  the  religious  life  of 
the  community.  The  Bible  is  revered,  and  the  youth  is 
taught  respect  for  things  religious.  Moreover,  social  de- 
mands are  less  insistent  and  frequent,  giving  the  Sunday 
school  a  peculiar  social  opportunity.  Nor  should  be  over- 
looked the  initiative  that  farm  life  demands.  Early  these 
youths  are  taught  self-reliance.  They  must  meet  Nature 
and  learn  to  deal  with  her  in  a  practical  way  if  they  woulcr 
"get  on."  All  these  experiences  develop  that  individuality 
that  is  so  refreshing  in  the  lives  of  country  boys  and  girls. 

These  considerations  indicate  that  the  teachers  of  inter- 
mediates and  seniors  in  the  rural  Sunday  schools  must 
meet  problems  quite  peculiar  to  themselves.  Lesson  mate- 
rial must  be  chosen  in  view  of  the  educational  restrictions 


60  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

of  the  pupils.  Lessons  stressing  the  social  rather  than 
the  emotional  and  personal  side  of  religious  life  are  to  be 
desired.  In  a  group  in  which  social  organization  and  living 
have  been  little  practiced  leadership  must  be  sought  most 
carefully  and  most  diligently  developed.  Plans  for  recrea- 
tion must  be  attempted  again  and  again  before  group  play 
and  group  activity  show  signs  of  true  enjoyment.  The 
brain  must  be  cudgeled  to  discover  forms  of  social  service, 
that  religion  may  become  truly  socialized.  And,  not  least, 
the  religious  implication  of  much  that  is  considered  com- 
mon if  not  useless  must  be  revealed. 

It  is  true  that  all  this  needs  doing  for  the  city  boys  and 
girls  too.  There  is  no  denying  that.  But  in  the  country 
far  more  than  in  tlie  city  social  religion  and  expertness  in 
social  cooperation  are  sadly  lacking.  Before  these  things 
can  be  fully  accomplished  there  is  need  to  go  at  the  task 
of  supplying  rural  Sunday  schools  with  housing  adequate 
to  such  a  program  and  of  providing  lesson  material  that 
shall  interpret  country  life  to  its  pupils  as  fully  and  as  well 
as  does  much  of  the  present  literature  interpret  city  life  to 
the  urban  boy  and  girl.  Fortunately,  with  the  rural  tele- 
phones, better  roads,  the  automobile,  better  schools,  wider 
distribution  of  books  and  periodicals,  and  the  general  rise 
of  intellectual  and  social  living,  the  differences  between 
these  youths  of  the  country  and  those  of  the  city  are  disap- 
pearing; but  as  yet  this  element  in  our  Sunday  schools  is 
still  a  group  to  itself,  demanding  special  attention  and 
consideration. 

Questions 

1.  What  reasons  can  you  think  of  for  keeping  the  sexes 
apart  in  the  class  work?  Do  the  same  reasons  apply  to  the 
social  and  recreational  life  of  the  department? 

2.  Name  some  advantages  the  high-school  group  possesses 
for  study  and  recitation.  What  advantages  in  the  larger 
experiences  of  life  have  those  in  the  working  group? 


GROUP  DIFFERENCES  61 

3.  What  demands  does  the  rural  boy  or  girl  lay  upon  the 
teacher? 

Observation 

If  possible,  visit  two  classes — one  made  up  of  high-school 
students,  and  the  other  of  factory  or  business  youth — noting 
their  relative  interest,  lesson  attention,  ability  to  handle 
the  printed  page,  and  to  discuss  the  lesson. 


CHAPTER  VI 

GOD  IN  THE  LIFE  OP  YOUTH 

"So  near  is  grandeur  to  our  dust, 
So  near  is  God  to  man, 
When  duty  whispers  low  'Thou  must!' 
The  youth  replies,  'I  can!'" 

Two  paradoxes  confront  workers  with  youth:  First,  this 
is  the  time  of  highest  moral  idealism,  of  religious  conver- 
sions, and  of  gathering  into  church  membership;  secondly, 
it  is  the  time  of  all  others  when  criminal  careers  are  en- 
tered upon.  Such  astounding  divergencies  in  character- 
building,  coming  as  they  do  at  precisely  the  same  time,  give 
one  reason  to  pause  and  reflect.  How  is  it  possible  that  out 
of  the  same  fountain  of  youth  come  waters  bitter  and 
sweet? 

1.  The  crystallization  of  character  toivard  the  good. 
To  see  more  clearly  the  crystallization  of  character  going 
on  during  these  years  let  us  look  at  some  data  gathered 
by  various  investigators.  Coe'  has  collected  and  examined 
some  seventeen  hundred  experiences  of  Christian  men  and 
women,  predominantly  men,  who  have  passed  the  age  of 
adolescence.  These  individuals  are  distributed  as  follows: 
graduates  from  Drew  Theological  Seminary,  776;  Young 
Men's  Christian  Association  officers,  526;  conversion  cases 
examined  by  Professor  Starbuck,  51;  spontaneous  cases, 
same  author,  75;  members  of  the  Rock  River  Conference, 
272;  Coe's  own  cases,  84;  total,  1,784.  Collecting  all  the 
ages  of  conversion  or  of  religious  awakening  and  striking 
an  average,  we  have  sixteen  and  four-tenths  years  as  the 
age  at  which  these  persons  were  awakened  to  a  new  life 
which  definitely  decided  their  future  moral  and  religious 
careers. 


^  Spiritual  Life,  Chapter  I. 

62 


GOD  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  YOUTH  63 

"Billy"  Sunday  in  his  campaigns  has  repeatedly  called 
for  show  of  hands  as  to  the  age  of  conversion,  this  call 
resulting  invariably  in  discovering  that  the  overwhelming 
proportion  of  those  in  his  vast  audiences  began  under 
twenty  to  mold  their  lives  after  their  conception  of  the 
Christian  pattern. 

Nor  must  we  think  that  religious  awakening  is  always 
identified  with  the  revival. 

Not  infrequently  it  is  spontaneous  and  altogether  inde- 
pendent of  revival  influences  or  other  pressure  from  outside. 
One  young  lady  relates  that  at  the  age  of  fourteen,  while 
she  was  walking  in  a  neighbor's  garden,  suddenly  the 
thought  came  to  her  that  she  had  passed  from  death  unto 
life.  There  were  no  especial  emotional  manifestations, 
yet  this  event  she  has  always  looked  upon  as  a  decisive 
one.  In  general,  at  this  age  the  child's  ordinary  religious 
customs  and  beliefs  assume  some  new  aspects.  They  be- 
come matters  of  greater  moment,  more  vitally  interesting, 
more  full  of  feeling.  The  ordinary  services  of  the  church 
or  the  ordinary  acts  of  devotion  may  become  fraught  with 
the  most  weighty  import.^ 

These  cases  clearly  indicate  that,  so  far  as  they  are  con- 
cerned, a  definite  and  conscious  crystallization  of  forces 
making  for  good  character  was  going  on  in  these  years. 
Have  we  as  clear  indication  of  a  parallel  precipitation  of 
the  evil  forces  that  go  toward  the  making  of  an  antisocial 
and  evil  character? 

2.  The  crystallization  of  character  toward  the  evil. 
Dr.  Healy,  who  has  made  a  close  study  of  more  than  a 
thousand  delinquents  in  order  to  understand  the  factors 
that  entered  into  their  delinquent  careers,  has  found  that 
in  large  part  these  offenders  began  their  unfortunate  prac- 
tices in  their  youth.^  They  may  not  have  become  actual 
delinquents  in  the  technical  sense  until  after  their  ma- 
jority; but  as  Dr.  Healy  has  set  about  attempting  to  unravel 
the  causes  of  their  moral  obliquities  he  has  had  to  go  back 


^  Coe,  Spiritual  Life,  pagea  49,  50. 
2  The  Individual  Delinquent. 


64  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

and  retrace  their  youthful  careers,  finding  therein,  more  fre- 
quently than  not,  the  seeds  of  later  derelictions.  After  de- 
ducting all  those  whose  delinquencies  root  primarily  in 
absolute  mental  subnormality  we  find  those  whose  nor- 
mality should  have  promised  usually  good  conduct  tak- 
ing their  first  downward  step  in  the  very  years  under 
consideration. 

All  that  is  attempted  by  the  foregoing  illustrations 
either  of  early  and  youthful  bent  toward  religion  and 
higher  moral  attainment  or  toward  immorality  and  delin- 
quency is  to  show  that  these  are  pregnant  years  for  the 
moral  and  religious  future  of  the  race.  If  it  is  argued  that 
in  either  direction  extreme  cases  have  been  taken — in  the 
one  those  which  have  eventuated  in  specially  religious  per- 
sonalities, in  the  other  those  which  have  passed  con- 
siderably from  the  paths  of  rectitude,  if  not  entirely  beyond 
the  pale  of  the  law, — it  may  be  replied  that  the  choice 
makes  no  difference  with  the  point  involved.  Those  are 
decisive  years,  whether  the  decisions  are  more  or  less 
dramatic.  Even  those  who  have  slipped  quietly  out  of 
childhood  into  maturity  with  no  apparent  stress  or  strain 
in  the  moral  and  religious  development  look  back  upon 
these  years  as  the  period  when  characters  were  in  incuba- 
tion, when  they  and  their  youthful  companions  began  to 
make  choices  that  in  the  intervening  time  have  determined 
the  varying  careers  that  have  ensued.  They  were  years  when 
habits  were  being  fixed,  moral  viewpoints  established,  com- 
panionships determined,  ideals  discovered.  Those  whose 
memories  are  good  are  in  large  numbers  able  to  cite  certain 
turning  points,  milestones  in  their  development  when  the 
forming  of  a  friendship,  the  reading  of  a  book,  the  meet- 
ing of  a  temptation  successfully  or  unsuccessfully,  the 
change  of  a  residence  and  the  reaction  to  a  new  environ- 
ment, or  the  seeming  accidental  situation  awakened  new 
moral  and  religious  life  or,  on  the  contrary,  became  the 
means  of  deadening  one's  finer  sensibilities  or  the  indul- 
gence of  desire  unwholesome  to  the  future  moral  life. 


GOD  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  YOUTH  65 

3.  How  character  is  formed:  habit.  That  these  are 
formative  years,  morally  and  religiously,  that  during  this 
time  crises  may  arise — indeed,  are  likely  to  arise — leading 
to  the  making  or  the  misshaping  of  character,  all  will  likely 
agree.  The  leader  of  youth  may  perceive  that  this  is  the 
time  of  opportunity,  that  these  days  are  in  a  special  sense, 
fraught  with  spiritual  significance  and  destiny.  But  is  it 
clear  how  he  may  work  with  God,  with  nature,  and  with 
the  personality  of  the  youth  himself  to  the  largest  and 
best  ends?  What  is  the  relation  between  the  orderly  pro- 
cesses of  habit  formation  and  the  explosive  emotional 
readjustment  of  life's  ideals  and  life's  conduct?  Is  God  as 
truly  in  the  former  process  as  in  the  latter,  and,  if  so, 
where?  And  has  conversion  a  physical,  emotional,  and  tem- 
peramental background,  or  is  it  "spiritual,"  transcendent, 
and  unrelated  to  the  rest  of  the  natural  life  of  youth? 
These  are  not  idle  questions,  but  must  be  answered  in  fact 
if  not  in  words  in  the  kind  of  efforts  put  forth  on  behalf 
of  the  spiritual  welfare  of  these  early-adolescent  boys  and 
girls. 

First  of  all  one  must  look  squarely  at  the  facts  of  moral 
life.  In  the  chaos  that  follows  upon  the  advent  into  ado- 
lescence from  childhood  one  of  the  first  essentials  is  to  get. 
right  habits  fixed.  These  good  habits  are  the  bulwark 
against  the  many  temptations  that  assail  in  later  days. 
Without  stopping  at  this  time  to  ask  how  these  good  habits, 
are  to  be  formed  let  us  see  what  habits  are  especially 
desirable. 

Bodily  habits  come  first.  The  youth  needs  to  possess 
himself  of  such  habits  of  bodily  cleanliness,  of  proper  food 
mastication,  of  sleep,  and  of  exercise,  that  the  physical 
organism  can  withstand  the  strains,  physical  and  moral, 
put  upon  it.  Bad  physical  condition  is  a  large  contributing 
cause  to  delinquency.  Carious  teeth  send  poison  through 
the  body;  defective  eyesight  causes  nervousness  through 
eye  strain;  poor  elimination  causes  poisons  producing  de- 
pression and  melancholy;    underexercise  promises  devital- 


^66  LEADERS    OF   YOUTH 

ization  and  listlessness;  narcotics  and  stimulants  share  in 
throwing  the  physical  being  out  of  joint/ 

Good  mental  habits  are  as  vital  as  are  good  bodily  habits. 
"Lack  of  healthy  mental  interests"^  and  "bad  mental  im- 
agery"^ are  two  large  contributing  factors  in  delinquency, 
as  Healy  finds.  The  first  means  that  the  mind  having  no 
healthy  interests  to  focus  itself  upon  is  allowed  to  catch  at 
the  first  excitement  or  what  promises  excitement,  regardless 
of  results.  For  the  mind  of  youth  is  ever  alert  to  get  some- 
thing out  of  life.  If  left  unnourished  by  healthy  interests, 
it  will  seize  upon  whatever  offers  itself.  "Bad  mental 
imagery"  consists  in  the  tendency  of  the  mind  to  hold 
such  pictures  before  it  as  lead  to  thieving,  violence,  and 
other  forms  of  criminality  or  of  antisocial  conduct. 

Habits  of  honesty  in  property  and  in  speech  are  likewise 
essential  elements  in  social  living  second  to  none.  Failure 
to  acquire  those  habits  militates  more  than  all  else  against 
adjusting  oneself  to  the  business  and  social  environment 
in  which  this  age  finds  itself.  Property  rights  especially 
are  highly  respected  in  our  moral  thinking,  and  truth- 
fulness is  constantly  increasing  as  a  requirement  in  our 
social  intercourse. 

Added  to  the  foregoing  are  habits  of  efficiency  and  self- 
control.  In  our  present  life  the*  determination  to  "get 
things  done,"  to  achieve,  makes  attention,  application,  and 
quick  adaptability  to  new  situations  imperative.  Self-con- 
trol is  involved  in  any  real  success. 

For  the  time  one  must  give  up  those  hair-breadth  dis- 
tinctions between  morals  and  religion.  For  the  world  of 
boys  and  girls  the  moral  becomes  religious,  and  the  reli- 
gious must  become  always  moral.  To  help  create  good 
moral  and  bodily  habits  in  youth  is  not  "merely  moral" 
nor  "merely  physical";  it  is  true  progress  in  spiritual 
things.    What  is  sought  is  a  wholesome  body  as  a  physical 


» Healy,  The  Individual  Delinquent,  Chapters  III,  IV,  V,  Part  II. 
i/bid.,  Chapter  VII. 
*Ibid.,  Chapter  IX. 


GOD  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  YOUTH  67 

basis  for  intellectual,  moral,  and  religious  living,  a  mind 
kept  clean  and  active  through  healthy  mental  interests, 
sincerity  in  word  and  deed,  and  efficiency  and  self-control. 

Such  habits  do  not  come  in  a  single  day;  they  are  built  up 
slowly  through  the  years  of  childhood,  but  they  become  per- 
sonal in  a  new  way  in  the  days  of  youth.  Before,  one  has 
been  directed;  now,  one  must  choose  for  himself.  Nor  need 
we  forget  that  these  habits  are  the  product  of  a  compli- 
cated set  of  factors.  The  home  life  sets  its  own  moral 
living  before  the  child,  and  he  soon  accepts  its  standards 
and  forms  his  habits  under  its  tutelage.'  The  community 
has  its  standards  also,  and  these  are  more  or  less  insistent 
upon  moral  living.  But  youth  must  test  those  standards  of 
childhood  for  himself,  adopt  some,  reject  others,  and 
habituate  himself  to  what  finally  become  truly  his.  Need 
it  be  said  that  into  the  final  process  enter  some  of  the 
ideals  held  before  him — ideals  that  have  never  been  attained 
but  are  ever  striven  for?  Or,  rejecting  these,  he  sinks  to 
the  level  more  easily  attained,  with  greater  or  less  re- 
luctance. 

4.  Habits  and  spiritual  living.  All  this  is  very  com- 
monplace, very  well  known.  Why,  then,  repeat?  Only 
because  it  is  so  often  forgotten  that  contributing  to  right 
habits  is  just  so  far  contributing  to  spiritual  develop- 
ment. Let  us  say  it  reverently:  It  is  getting  God  into 
the  lives  of  these  boys  and  girls.  For  note  that  the  kind 
of  God  we  want  them  to  know  is  a  God  of  order,  of  clean- 
liness and  nobility,  of  sincerity  and  of  self-control.  He 
dest  knoivs  that  kind  of  God  who  participates  in  that  kind 
of  life.  Whatever  the  Sunday  school  does  to  cultivate  right 
relations  between  the  young,  to  inspire  clean  thinking  and 
wholesome  acting,  to  set  personal  and  social  ideals  before 
these  young  people  which  shall  inspire  to  higher  endeavor 
is  part  of  its  program  of  training  in  religion.  Habits  come 
through  repeated  actions.  Actions  are  repeated  which  give 
satisfactions.    Now,  it  is  the  province  of  the  Sunday  school 


'76id.,  Chapter  VI. 


68  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

to  make  right  actions,  right  fun,  right  social  living,  right 
athletics,  so  satisfying  that  they  shall  become  habitual. 
This  is  not  something  added  to  the  Sunday-school  pro- 
gram to  catch  boys  and  girls  and  hold  them  in  the  school; 
it  is  part  of  the  plan  to  work  with  God  in  his  great 
enterprise  of  making  Christian  men  and  women. 

This  means  obviously  that  the  Sunday  school  and  its 
leaders  will  be  most  zealous  supporters  of  clubs,  recrea- 
tional programs,  athletic  contests,  and  of  all  other  means 
of  wholesome  interests  and  earnest  living.  The  spiritual 
development  of  youth  is  wrought  out  in  attention  to  the 
duties  and  pleasures  of  home,  of  school,  of  the  "gang," 
the  club,  or  the  clique,  in  the  choice  of  amusements  and 
reading.     Here   he   is   getting   his  bent. 

5.  Character  formation  throiigli  awakening.  But 
this  unconscious  crystallization  of  character  is  not  the 
whole  story.  Surely  the  records  of  conversions,  awakenings, 
storm-and-stress  experiences,  the  quickenings  of  spiritual, 
intellectual,  and  moral  life,  are  too  abundant  to  leave  one 
in  doubt.  Unfortunately  these  more  dramatic  climaxes  of 
character  building  have  demanded  undue  attention.  They 
have,  because  of  their  very  unusualness,  assumed  propor- 
tions altogether  too  great.  Not  that  they  have  not  been 
pivotal  in  the  individual,  but  they  have  been  standardized 
as  the  type  to  which  all  must  come.  And,  more,  they  have 
appeared  so  mysteriously  that  they  have  been  chosen  as 
the  clear  indications  of  the  presence  of  the  divine.  Now, 
what  are  the  facts? 

First,  it  should  be  noted  that  such  awakenings  are  not 
confined  to  the  spiritual  life,  in  the  narrower  sense,  nor  to 
the  Christian  faith,  nor  to  those  branches  of  the  Christian 
Church  which  demand  the  conversion  experience.  They 
are  characteristic  of  certain  types  of  adolescent  and 
later  growth.  They  cut  laterally  through  all  religions 
among  certain  individuals  during  adolescent  and  later  years. 
They  are,  however,  more  common  among  those  commu- 
nions which  specialize  in  these  experiences  and,  therefore. 


GOD  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  YOUTH  69 

may  become  products  of  special  propaganda.  They  are 
found  more  often  among  persons  of  certain  temperament 
and  so  should  be  classed  with  other  phenomena  of  mental 
life.  And,  lastly,  it  should  be  noted  that  they  are  by  no 
means  universal  even  among  those  in  the  denominations  in 
which  such  experiences  are  capitalized.  Many  Methodists, 
cannot  testify  to  such  experiences,  although  their  lives  wit- 
ness to  the  fact  that  they  attain  true  Christian  living.' 

Only  one  whose  mind  is  warped  by  theological  prejudice 
can  read  the  accumulated  evidence  and  fail  to  see  that 
conversion  conforms  to  psychological  laws  and,  conse- 
quently, is  no  more  and  no  less  miraculous  than  the 
crystallization  of  character  through  slower  and  less  dra- 
matic channels.  Further,  as  has  been  discovered,  conver- 
sion experience  is  not  unrelated  to  the  will  nor  to  the 
normal  activities  of  the  mind. 

The  conclusion  is  obvious,  then,  that  sudden  conversion  is 
the  normal  experience  of  some  adolescent  individuals,  that 
its  mechanism  is  according  to  well-known  laws  of  the  .mind; 
that  it  is  altogether  absent  among  others  of  the  same 
age  who  pass  on  to  clearly  accepted  Christian  living,  and 
that  its  presence  or  absence  is  more  dependent  on  the 
temperament  and  spiritual  surroundings  of  the  individual 
than   on   his  personal   deserts. 

That  God  is  found  in  these  experiences  is  not  for  a 
moment  to  be  questioned,  nor  that  "spiritual  graces"  are 
bestowed  through  them.  That  they  are  pivotal  points  in 
the  spiritual  lives  of  many  cannot  be  refuted,  nor  is  there 
a  desire  to  minimize  in  the  least  their  profound  trans- 
forming power.  But  God  is  not  to  be  found  because  here 
is  a  departure  from  the  uniform  laws  of  the  Deity;  rather 
he  is  discovered,  as  in  the  less  dramatic  building  of  char- 
acter, in  the  spiritual  product  that  ensues.  In  either 
case  it  is  the  power  of  moral  and  spiritual  ideas  and  ideals 
to  transform  life  and  to  make  it  conform  to  the  standards 


iSee  Spiritual  Life,  Coe,  Chapters  I,  III;  also  The  Psychology  of  Religion, 
Starbuck,  Chapters  IV,  VII,  VIII,  XXIV. 


70  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

of  Christ,  to  bring  the  individual  "into  the  measure  of  the 
stature  of  the  fullness  of  Christ,"  that  is  to  determine 
whether  God  is  or  is  not  present. 

6.  liife  decisions.  One  thing,  however,  must  be  kept 
clearly  in  mind:  this  is  the  time  of  life  decisions.  Now, 
the  youth  must  be  led  to  make  his  own,  personal,  positive, 
and  conscious  choice  of  Jesus  Christ  as  his  Friend  and 
Saviour.  Whether  this  decision  is  brought  about  dra- 
matically, with  great  emotional  convulsions,  or  more  delib- 
erately but  with  an  undercurrent  of  genuine  feeling,  the 
decision  must  be  made.  For  now  these  boys  and  girls 
have  reached  the  age  when  their  natures  call  them  to 
shape  their  own  lives,  to  seek  ideals,  to  identify  them- 
selves consciously  with  the  persons  and  institutions  that 
embody  these  ideals.  The  tremendous  dynamic  in  their 
moral  and  spiritual  progress  is  to  be  found  in  devotion 
to  Christ.  To  him  they  must  be  brought  to  yield  volun- 
tarily their  finest  and  noblest  devotion.  Naturally  they 
will  want  to  identify  themselves  with  his  church  as  a 
means  of  bringing  about  his  purpose  in  themselves  and  in 
the  social  life  of  this  world. 

These  are  years  of  vital  importance  to  the  moral  and 
spiritual  uplift  of  these  pupils.  The  spiritual  leader  of  youth 
must  help  them  find  interests  tremendously  compelling 
while  they  are  wholesome  and  character-forming,  establish- 
ing thereby  good  habits  of  bodily  care,  or  mental  activity, 
and  of  social  enthusiasms.  In  all  this  God  is  in  the  pro- 
cess. He  must  also  help  youth  find  Jesus  Christ  and  make 
him  the  center  of  their  noblest  aspirations  and  the  con- 
fidant in  all  their  plans.  Whether  this  discovery  of  the 
Christ  is  dramatic,  whether  the  eyes  of  youth  be  suddenly 
opened  to  see  Jesus,  or  whether  he  is  a  growing  discovery 
makes  no  difference;  but  it  does  make  a  tremendous  differ- 
ence whether  or  not  he  is  discovered,  and  whether  the  life 
of  the  boys  or  girls  is  made  to  yield  to  his  leadership.  Fur- 
ther, the  discovery  to  become  real  and  potential  must  be 
consciously  made  and  publicly  revealed  by  allying  oneself 


GOD  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  YOUTH  71 

with  those  persons  and  institutions  that  stand  for  his 
cause.  In  all  this,  in  the  growing  consciousness  of  youth, 
in  his  social  awakening  as  well  as  in  his  moral  and  spirit- 
ual development,  God  is  in  the  process,  revealing  himself 
in  the  life  which  is  being  transformed  into  the  likeness  of 
the  Master  Jesus  Christ. 

Questions 

1.  In  thinking  of  your  own  experience  note  the  age  at 
which  each  religious  awakening  occurred.  How  far  do 
these  experiences  confirm  what  is  said  in  the  early  para- 
graphs? 

2.  If  you  live  in  a  county  seat,  you  may  be  able  to  learn 
the  ages  at  which  various  criminals  were  sentenced.  How 
far  do  these  findings  indicate  that  evil  character  is  crystal- 
lizing during  adolescence? 

3.  Name  some  desirable  habits  that  should  be  formed 
during  these  years. 

4.  How  do  religious  awakenings  tend  to  crystallize  char- 
acter?    Can  God  be  in  a  process  that  is  natural? 

5.  Why  should  life  decisions  to  follow  Christ  be  made 
during  intermediate-senior  years? 


CHAPTER    VII 

YOUTH  AND  THE  CHURCH 

So  closely  is  Christianity  identified  with  the  organized 
church  that  attention  must  definitely  be  given  to  the 
problem  of  the  relation  of  youth  to  its  membership,  its 
instruction,  its  institutions,  and  its  life.  How  does  the 
church  appeal  to  youth?  What  natural  interests  seek 
satisfaction  throughout  its  ministries?  How  should  the 
church  go  about  the  task  of  answering  the  religious  and 
social  needs  of  adolescence? 

1.  The  child  and  the  church.  In  childhood  the  church 
is  accepted  as  a  matter  of  fact.  The  attitude  of  the  child 
reflects  the  attitude  of  the  home.  If  the  home  is  sym- 
pathetic toward  the  church,  and  the  child  is  reared  in  the 
same  spirit,  the  church  soon  becomes  an  object  of  interest. 
On  the  other  hand,  if  the  family  is  indifferent  or  hostile, 
the  church  may  stand  outside  the  immediate  interests  of 
the  child.  In  either  case  the  relation  is  largely  reflected. 
This  does  not  mean  that  the  relation  then  existing  is  indif- 
ferent as  regards  later  religious  development.  Quite  the 
contrary,  the  attitude  in  childhood  of  sympathetic  interest 
or  of  indifference  may  in  later  years  color  all  the  relations 
of  the  individual.  But  there  is  nothing  as  yet  of  a  highly 
personal  kind. 

2.  Social  impulses  and  church  membership.  With 
the  dawning  of  adolescence  there  awakens  the  social  im- 
pulse. What  has  been  an  accepted  relation  becomes  charged 
with  personal  significance.  The  church  comes  to  typify 
certain  religious  ideas.  The  invitation  to  fellowship  with 
the  members  of  the  church  becomes  a  personal  invitation. 
Not  infrequently  the  contagion  of  the  group  adds  to  the 
weight  of  the  more  intimate  desire  to  identify  oneself  with 

72 


YOUTH  AND  THE  CHURCH  73 

those  who  make  up  its  membership.  Others  join  the 
church,  and  as  they  belong  to  our  group,  we  too  are  con- 
fronted with  the  question  "Why  not  I?"  The  awakening 
of  the  social  impulse  means  that  one  has  arrived  at  the 
stage  at  which  uniting  his  individual  self  with  others  in 
a  common  endeavor  is  satisfying.  One  wants  to  belong  to 
this  and  to  that  largely  because  the  "belonging"  yields 
happiness.  There  is  a  certain  sense  of  personal  expansion 
in  this  identification  with  the  larger  group.  Now,  the 
church,  representing  to  us  religious  thought  and  emotion, 
is  the  larger  group  to  which  attachment  is  made  for  the 
sake  of  enlarging  one's  religious  personality.  Not  that 
the  situation  is  analyzed;  we  only  know  at  this  age  that 
we  "want  to  belong."  Perhaps  we  should  be  at  a  loss  to 
give  any  valid  reasons  for  our  joining.  Likely  a  phrasing 
of  the  matter,  if  one  were  pressed,  would  be  of  the  con- 
ventional sort  that  has  been  learned  from  those  older. 
But  the  awakening  social  impulse  has  swept  many  into 
the  current  of  the  larger  religious  group,  and  this  thrill  of 
social  contact  is  what  they  are  content  with,  at  least 
for  a  time. 

It  goes  without  saying  that  at  this  age  the  "church  of  our 
choice"  is  the  only  church  of  which  one  has  any  intimate 
knowledge.  We  are  Methodists,  Baptists,  Presbyterians,  or 
Catholics  because  in  one  of  the  above  institutions  we  have 
found  the  best-known  social-religious  group. 

3.  Emotions  and  church  membership.  Somewhat 
above  the  level  of  social  contagion  of  the  simpler  sort  is 
found  the  tide  of  religious  emotionalism  that  sweeps  many 
into  the  life  of  the  church.  In  this  case  the  new  reli- 
gious life,  the  awakening,  or  conversion  has  given  religious 
enthusiasm  a  new  meaning.  One  is  in  love  with  God  and 
with  his  people;  and  as  naturally  as  one  turns  to  one's 
family  for  understanding  and  sympathy  in  time  of  trouble 
or  of  joy  so  one  turns  to  the  family  life  of  the  church  to 
secure  the  sympathetic  understanding  of  what  had  just 
happened  within  and  expresses  within  its  family  life  the 


74  LEADERS    OF   YOUTH 

new  hopes  and  ideals.  This  gathering  with  our  fellows  in 
religious  enlargement  is  quite  as  uncritical  as  was  its 
predecessor.  It  is  likely  to  come  at  a  little  later  period 
of  life,  say  from  thirteen  to  eighteen,  but  individual  differ- 
ences are  so  great  that  no  dates  can  be  fixed. 

Those  who  enter  into  church  fellowship  in  their  earlier 
years,  say  from  ten  to  eighteen,  are  most  apt  to  be  carried 
in  on  this  tide  of  uncritical  social  feeling.  If  church  mem- 
bership is  delayed,  the  more  critical  faculties  exercise  them- 
selves, and  one  may  ask  himself  concerning  the  mode  of 
entering,  discover  differences  in  the  form  of  admission  that 
loom  large  on  the  moral  horizon,  question  the  form  of 
church  life  and  administration,  and  stumble  at  credal 
requirements.  Here  the  problems  confronting  the  youth 
may  be  so  insoluble  that  membership  is  postponed,  perhaps 
indefinitely. 

4.  Religious  fellowship.  It  is  seen  then  that  the 
church  represents  to  youth  a  religious-social  fellowship  en- 
tered into  because  of  the  rise  of  the  general  social  demand 
for  fellowship;  or  because  of  the  more  intensely  emotional 
upheaval  in  the  inner  life  calling  for  like  religious  asso- 
ciations; or,  at  a  later  period,  because  critically  this  insti- 
tution is  believed  best  fitted  to  meet  our  religious  needs, 
intellectual  as  well  as  social. 

But  this  word  "fellowship"  must  not  be  defined  too  nar- 
rowly. In  the  commingling  of  two  in  social  intercourse 
there  is  the  combining  of  two  minds,  the  joint  product 
being  discussion.  There  is  also  the  warmth  we  call  fellow- 
ship if,  as  is  supposed,  we  have  in  this  intercourse  common 
interests.  This  warmth  is  something  more  than  cold  dis- 
cussion. The  quality  of  the  intellectual  flow  is  different  by 
reason  of  this  "something  more."  When  one  speaks  of 
Christian  fellowship  one  means  likewise  something  more 
than  mere  assembling  together.  True,  the  fellowship 
reaches  out  to  embrace  all  participants  in  one  common 
feeling  that  is  enhanced  by  group  contagion;  it  also  reaches 
out  to  the  object  of  its  fellowship  and  embraces  fellowship 


YOUTH  AND  THE  CHURCH  75 

<vlth  God.  This  reaching  out,  this  enhancing  quality  that 
includes  in  its  feelings  not  man  alone  but  Gou  himself,  is 
what  is  sought  by  many  who  enter  the  church  to  nourish 
their  religious  life.  When  the  church  ministers  in  the 
deeper  way  to  the  adolescent  he  finds  in  it  not  only  comity 
of  interests  but  that  "something  more"  which  we  term  fel- 
lowship with  God.  The  mystical  element,  sometimes  incor- 
porating the  aesthetic,  sometimes  the  intellectual,  is  part  of 
the  satisfyingness  found  in  the  life  of  the  church. 

5.  Church,  activities  and  youth.  But  we  must  go  one 
step  further  in  our  analysis.  Youth  is  eager  for  action.  It 
is  instinctive  to  put  its  new  life  into  expression.  The 
church,  then,  if  it  would  not  murder  the  new  life,  if  it 
"would  not  quench  the  Spirit,"  is  bound  to  furnish  abun- 
dance of  activity,  to  give  youth  real  things,  worth-while 
things,  to  do.  Not  only  in  the  narrow  world  of  religion 
itself — prayer,  praise,  and  testimony — but  in  the  wider 
range  of  social  and  philanthropic  activities  must  an  ade- 
quate outlet  for  these  energies  be  found.  Great  at  this 
period  of  life  as  is  the  emotional  appeal,  the  appeal  of  the 
senses  and  of  muscular  exertion  is  even  greater.  However, 
before  going  further  with  this  thought,  let  us  retrace  our 
steps  a  little. 

All  that  has  been  said  implies  that  the  child  should 
emerge  naturally  into  the  fellowship  of  the  church,  finding 
therein  the  environment  that  he  needs  for  his  social  and 
religious  nature.  Large  as  is  the  number  who  proceed  in 
this  fashion,  the  still  larger  number  never  let  their  re- 
ligious nature  function  in  this  manner.  The  Sunday  school 
gathers  them  in,  instruction  and  training  of  a  sort  are 
given;  then,  at  just  the  time  when  the  larger  life  should 
be  sought  in  the  church,  these  boys  and  girls  leave  Sundaj 
school  altogether.  If  one  would  picture  the  membership 
of  the  Sunday  school,  one  would  find  it  not  unlike  a  dumb- 
bell— large  at  the  extremes,  that  is,  the  Beginners,'  Primary, 
and  Junior  Departments  at  one  end,  and  the  young  people 
and  adults  at  the  other.     Between  these  two  runs  a  thin 


76  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

handle.  It  is  evident  to  the  most  casual  observer  that  the 
intermediate  and  senior  boys  and  girls  are  not  held  by  the 
Sunday  school.  This  is  just  the  age  when  the  church,  by 
all  the  laws  of  the  mental  and  social  life,  should  make 
the  greatest  appeal  to  the  young.  Why,  then,  does  the 
church  not  hold  them?  Is  it  not  possible  that  those  respon- 
sible have  looked  upon  these  years  as  a  time  of  preparation, 
an  in-between  stage,  instead  of  studying  how  to  meet  the 
needs  of  the  teen-age  group?  Shall  we  not,  perhaps,  have 
to  recast  our  program  of  instruction  in  the  school,  our 
scheme  of  recreation  and  of  social  expression,  and  even  our 
plan  of  organization  and  of  worship  so  as  to  incorporate 
these  pupils  more  completely  in  the  life  of  the  church? 
Finding,  as  we  do,  that  by  nature  boys  and  girls  are  ready 
to  go  forward  in  their  religious  development,  what  can 
the  church  do  to  help  them?  Let  no  standards  be  set  up  and 
then  attempts  made  to  bend  the  young  to  them,  but, 
rather,  let  us  see  what  the  boys  and  girls  need  and,  at  this 
trying  period  of  their  lives,  make  it  our  duty  to  fit  the 
ministries  of  the  church  to  them. 

6.  Hoiv  to  train  for  church  membership.  First,  the 
church,  through  its  Sunday  school,  must  train  the  new 
generation  for  church  membership.  The  uniform  lessons 
of  the  past  have  practically  neglected  this  important  service. 
The  growing  intellectual  life,  the  developing  social  con- 
sciousness, and  the  need  for  definite  personal  decision  have 
been  ignored,  while  emphasis  has  been  placed  on  studies  of 
miscellaneous  series  of  Bible  lessons.  "Decision  Day"  has 
been  depended  on  to  do  that  which  requires  years  of  care- 
ful instruction  in  a  well-organized  program  of  study.  The 
intellectual  background  and  the  developing  social  aware- 
ness have  been  neglected,  while  great  strain  has  been  put 
upon  the  pupil's  emotional  nature.  Every  part  of  a  well- 
developed  curriculum  should  point  to  a  life  that  is  to  be 
self-directed  and,  by  its  own  choice,  made  loyal  to  Jesus 
Christ  and  his  church.  Where  pastors'  classes  have  been 
attempted,  the  effort  frequently  has  been  to  do  in  a  few 


YOUTH  AND  THE  CHURCH  77 

weeks  or  months  what  can  be  done  only  by  making  this 
class  a  part  of  a  larger  process  of  preparation  for  church 
membership. 

Concretely,  on  the  basis  of  earlier  teaching  of  love  and 
service  to  God,  of  knowledge  of  his  ways  among  the  men  of 
the  Old  and  New  Testaments,  the  International  Graded 
Lessons  build  up  the  pupil's  appreciation  of  what  good 
character.  Christlike  character  is.  Especially  is  this 
brought  out  in  the  intermediate-senior  courses,  such  as  the 
study  of  the  life  of  Christ.  This  is  followed  by  lessons 
dealing  with  Christian  living,  having  as  their  object  to 
ground  the  pupils  in  the  essential  ideals  and  doctrines  of 
the  Christian  faith.  Thereafter  courses  dealing  with  the 
various  phases  of  Christian  service  and  with  more  exact 
and  scholarly  discussions  of  Biblical  history  and  literature 
are  means  of  enlarging  the  pupil's  knowledge  and  efficiency 
as  a  faithful  servant  of  Jesus  Christ.  Such  a  series  of 
studies  is  intended,  as  one  may  readily  see,  to  lead  the 
pupil  into  full  and  active  membership  in  the  church  and  to 
prepare  him  for  efficient  service  therein.  This  is  a  sig- 
nificant part  of  the  task  of  these  departments. 

The  second  essential  is  that  the  church  organize  its  whole 
educational  program  into  something  like  unity.  Pupils  are 
confused  as  they  become  members  of  the  Sunday  school, 
of  the  Junior  Epworth  League,  of  the  Epworth  League,  and 
of  other  societies  and  clubs,  in  attempting  to  understand 
their  relation  to  each  and  to  the  church  as  a  whole.  Each 
group  stands  by  itself,  making  its  own  appeal  to  some 
interest  but  unrelated  more  often  than  not  to  the  other 
enterprises.  To  correct  this  evil  the  whole  machinery  of 
the  church,  so  far  as  it  has  to  do  with  the  growing  child  or 
youth,  needs  correlating. 

Writing  upon  this  matter,  Miss  Maus  says: 

I  have  tested  groups  of  young  people  in  every  section  of 
the  United  States  and  have  yet  to  find  a  single  boy  or  girl 
in  the  adolescent  years  who  is  being  trained  to  think  and 
speak  in  terms  of  the  church.  Ask  any  group  of  church 
young  people  anywhere  what  organization   they  think   of 


78  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

when  you  say  Christian  education,  and  they  will  reply,  "The 
Sunday  school,"  or  "The  church  college."  Ask  them  what 
term  they  think  of  when  you  say  training  for  service,  and 
they  will  respond,  "Christian  Endeavor,"  "Epworth  League," 
or  "Baptist  Young  People's  Union."  Ask  them  what  or- 
ganization they  think  of  when  you  say  missions,  and  they 
will  reply,  "Young  Ladies'  Circle,"  "Mission  Band,"  "Tri- 
angle Club,"  etc.  In  five  or  more  years  of  testing  now  the 
author  has  yet  to  hear  an  individual  or  a  group  respond, 
"The    church."^ 

7.  The  churcH  board  of  religious  education.  To  cor- 
relate these  various  agencies  of  the  church  a  board  or  com- 
mittee of  religious  education  is  needed,  made  up  of  the 
pastor,  the  director  of  religious  education  if  there  is  one, 
the  superintendent  of  the  Sunday  school,  the  presidents  of 
the  various  societies  and  leaders  of  clubs,  and  representa- 
tives, three  or  four  in  number,  from  the  recognized  official 
body  of  the  church — the  official  board  or  the  local  con- 
ference. 

This  committee  supervises  all  educational  work.  It  plans 
the  provision  for  the  physical  needs  of  the  young,  including 
all  recreational  work;  it  plans  all  programs  of  study;  it 
passes  upon  all  provisions  for  worship  by  the  young;  it 
directs  and  coordinates  the  work  of  the  young  people's 
societies,  classes,  clubs,  and  all  forms  of  societies  among 
the  young;  it  seeks  to  provide  an  adequate,  coordinated, 
unified  program  of  instruction,  social  association  and  ac- 
tivity for  the  religious  development  of  the  young. 

The  modern  church,  as  a  result  of  the  work  of  the  com- 
mittee on  religious  education,  presents  to  all  its  people  a 
unified,  comprehensive  program  for  childhood  and  youth. 
It  sets  this  program  as  an  integral  part  of  the  program  of 
the  church,  protecting  it  from  invasion  and  calling  for  the 
support  necessary  to  carry  it  out.  It  keeps  this  program 
before  its  people.  The  scheme  for  childhood  and  youth  is 
just  as  much  an  essential  part  of  the  published  plan  of 
the  church  in  its  "bulletin"  as  is  the  period  of  worship. 
There  is  developed  thus  a  church  consciousness  of  the 
reality  of  the  child's  religious  life,  a  recognition  of  the 
child  as  a  factor  in  religious  life.  And,  what  is  equally 
important,  wherever  the  plan  is  intelligently  and  steadily 

1  Youth  and  the  Church,  pages  13,  14. 


YOUTH  AND  THE  CHURCH  79 

pursued,  there  is  created  in  the  child's  mind  a  sense  of 
a  real  and  normal  place  in  the  life  of  the  church.  This  is 
precisely  what  the  child  needs.  He  must  not  think  of  him- 
self as  being  temporarily  tucked  into  a  negligible  corner 
of  the  church  called  the  Sunday  school;  he  must  feel  that, 
through  the  school  as  a  real  part  of  the  church  and  through 
all  its  other  youth  activities,  he  really  belongs;  this  is  his 
church.^ 

8.    Expecting    adolescents    to    join    the    churcli.    The 

third  requisite  is  that  the  church  should  plan  for  and  ex- 
pect its  adolescents  to  join  the  church.  This  is  our  country, 
our  America;  but  at  twenty-one  we  find  ourselves  members 
of  the  civil  body  as  never  before.  Now  definite  responsi- 
bilities fall  upon  us.  We  must  assume  the  obligations  of 
citizenship  for  ourselves.  Just  so,  the  young  should  be 
taught  to  think  of  the  church  as  their  church,  to  find  them- 
selves quite  at  home  in  its  membership  and  life.  But  the 
time  arrives  when  each  for  himself  must  acknowledge  his 
obligations  to  the  institution  and  to  the  Master  and  must 
assume  responsibilities  not  before  shared.  Is  it  not  per- 
fectly clear  that  the  church  that,  year  after  year,  thus 
ministers  to  the  growing  life  of  its  young,  organizes  the 
study,  worship,  recreation,  and  service  life  into  one  com- 
plete whole,  may  reasonably  expect  to  reap  rich  rewards 
in  "accessions  on  confession  of  faith"  from  this  same  group, 
especially  if  it  shall  take  the  trouble  to  give  this  natural 
desire  for  self-expression  through  personal  identification 
in  the  membership  of  the  church  a  place  in  the  program  of 
the  year? 

How  this  may  be  carried  out  may  vary  in  detail.  One 
illustration  will  suffice  to  show  the  essential  features.  For 
more  than  a  dozen  years  a  pastor  has  regularly,  with  the 
coming  of  the  New  Year's  season,  when  resolutions  and 
promises  are  the  order  of  the  day,  called  attention  to  the 
opportunities,  the  privileges,  and  the  duty  of  membership 
in  the  Christian  Church.  Backed  by  a  comprehensive  pro- 
gram of  religious  education  in  his  Sunday  school  and  in 

1  The  Modern  Sunday  School,  Cope,  pages  23,  24. 


80  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

the  various  societies,  he  has  asked  Sunday-school  teachers, 
parents,  and  others  to  present  the  matter  of  these  privileges 
and  duties  to  the  young.  He  has  secured  a  list  of  those 
whose  years  naturally  suggest  that  the  time  is  ripe  for  the 
forward  step,  and  to  the  parents  of  these  children  and 
young  people  he  has  addressed  himself,  not  from  the  pulpit 
but  personally  in  the  homes.  He  has  called  together  those 
who  would  like  to  talk  over  the  matter  of  joining  the 
church  and  added  his  instructions  to  the  well-arranged 
studies  of  the  Sunday  school;  he  has  taken  time  from  a 
busy  pastor's  life  to  become  thoroughly  acquainted  with 
those  who  come  to  him.  The  result  has  been  that  never  has 
a  year  elapsed  under  his  ministry  that  boys  and  girls 
of  his  church  failed  to  respond  to  such  training  and  such 
pastoral  oversight.  This  is  far  different,  as  one  may  easily 
see,  from  the  hastily  arranged  and  altogether  unrelated 
emotional  upheaval  called  Decision  Day. 

The  fourth  requisite  is  that  the  church  shall  utilize  the 
energies  and  enthusiasms  of  youth  in  its  life.  This  is  done 
when  the  various  societies  are  discovered  to  be  the  church 
at  work.  It  is  furthered  by  giving  the  youth  of  the  church 
some  official  recognition  upon  all  committees  involving 
their  immediate  interests.  For,  after  all,  we  grow  toward 
freedom  and  self-direction  by  exercising  our  powers.  The 
self-organized  departments  and  classes  of  the  Sunday 
school,  the  self-organized  societies  and  clubs,  the  self- 
directed  activities  of  the  young,  and  their  active  participa- 
tion in  formulating  plans  as  well  as  in  executing  them  all 
help  toward  the  end  desired.  It  is  not  impossible  that 
many  a  pastor  can  learn  how  to  make  his  service  of  worship 
as  well  as  his  sermon  fit  the  needs  of  the  adolescents  by 
putting  them  upon  his  committees  on  worship  and  by  con- 
sulting them  freely  and  frequently  about  his  pulpit  minis- 
trations. For,  after  all,  inexperienced  as  these  youths  are, 
they  know  what  pleases  and  what  displeases  them,  and  they 
are  more  frank  in  their  commendations  and  their  criticisms, 
than  are  many  of  their  elders. 


YOUTH  AND  THE  CHURCH  81 

It  is  discovered  that  the  church  makes  a  tremendous  ap- 
peal to  those  youths  who  find  in  it  a  real  outlet  for  their 
social  and  religious  natures  and  who  learn  to  participate  in 
its  life.  Many  fail  to  make  this  connection  because  it  has 
not  been  made  plain  that  the  various  organizations  and 
activities  in  which  youth  are  engaged  are  the  church.  Fur- 
ther, there  has  been  failure  to  provide  adequate  instruction 
and  proper  recreational  and  social  activities  to  nourish  their 
growing  social  natures.  And,  too  often,  irrational  and 
highly  dramatic  methods  have  been  used  to  induce  the 
individual  to  "come  into"-  the  church  instead  of  attempting 
to  help  him  see  the  advantages  and  opportunities  for  larger 
self-expression  and  for  service.  The  life  of  the  church  has 
not  been  organized  to  meet  the  needs  of  the  youth. 

With  a  graded  curriculum,  with  correlated  activities  run- 
ning throughout  the  various  organizations,  with  plans 
wisely  and  sanely  laid  for  "opening  the  doors  of  the  church" 
to  the  young,  for  training  them  in  its  life,  and  for  their 
anticipation  in  its  further  development,  we  shall  stop  the 
"leak"  that  so  weakens  the  forces  of  Christianity  to-day. 

Questions 

1.  Is  the  intermediate  pupil  ripe  for  church  membership? 
Why?  Think  of  his  intellectual,  his  spiritual,  and  his  so- 
cial interests. 

2.  Was  joining  the  church  in  your  own  case  conforming 
to  tradition,  satisfying  a  social  impulse,  making  public  a 
new  inner  relation,  or  all  three? 

3.  How  does  the  graded  series  of  lessons  prepare  pupils 
for  church  membership?  Mention  such  courses  as  are 
especially  helpful  at  this  point,  and  suggest  reasons  for 
your  choice. 

4.  What  four  requisites  belong  to  a  complete  program  for 
incorporating  the  young  into  the  life  of  the  church? 

Observation 
Make  a  careful  survey   of  the   Intermediate-Senior   De- 


S2  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

partment  to  discover  (1)  how  many  are  church  members; 
(2)  how  many  are  actively  engaged  in  church  activities. 
Talk  with  the  pupils  and  learn,  if  possible,  if  they  feel 
themselves  really  responsible  for  the  success  of  the  church. 
Is  there  a  difference  between  church  members  and  non- 
church  members  in  their  attitude?  Submit  your  findings  to 
the  workers'  conference. 


PART  II 

MEANS   FOR   DEVELOPING   THE   INTERMEDIATE- 
SENIOR 


CHAPTER  VIII 
THE  WORKER'S  TASK 

What  is  the  task  of  the  intermediate-senior  workers  who 
carry  the  responsibility  for  the  religious  education  of  these 
youths?  In  view  of  the  growing  lives  with  which  the  inter- 
mediate-senior worker  is  confronted,  with  their  common 
characteristics,  their  rapidly  developing  bodies,  their  awak- 
ening sex  consciousness,  their  likenesses  and  their  differ- 
ences; considering  also  the  church  together  with  its  various 
organizations  and  institutions;  keeping  in  mind  the  way 
that  God  is  operating  in  building  up  character  and  in  trans- 
forming lives:  how  is  the  worker's  task  to  be  defined?  How 
may  one  state  the  aim?  What  is  the  end  sought,  and  how 
may  it  be  accomplished? 

Every  reader  will  say  at  once  that  the  end  sought  is 
Christian  character  in  the  pupils.  Everything  else — Bible 
study,  missionary  biography,  social  or  philanthropic  class 
or  departmental  activities,  and  worship — is  only  means  to 
the  one  end,  namely,  the  development  of  a  Christlike 
character  within  each  member  of  the  department.  But  how 
does  character  develop,  and  what  are  the  steps  necessary 
to  the  attainment  of  this  purpose? 

1.  How  character  develops.  Character  is  not  a  thing. 
It  is  a  process,  a  going  on,  a  way  of  meeting  life's  situa- 
tions. It  might  be  called  a  tendency  to  grow  wise;  that  is, 
to  think,  and  to  think  always  more  adequately,  foreseeing 
the  consequences  of  action  and  choosing  those  lines  of 
action  that  will  accomplish  our  purposes.  But  what  about 
these  purposes?  Where  do  they  come  from,  and  how  do 
we  decide  which  to  follow?  We  have  opposing  purposes 
or  desires  leading  us  in  opposite  directions.  The  vacillat- 
ing individual  who  follows  now  one  purpose,  now  another, 
lacks  something  of  the  stability  we  feel  belongs  to  the 
highest    type    of    character.      His    purposes    are    not    har- 

85 


86  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

monious.  His  life  is  not  organized.  He  has  no  supreme 
purpose  controlling  all  the  rest.  He  does  not  consider  ulti- 
mate consequences  but  thinks,  rather,  of  the  consequences 
of  each  isolated  activity  he  may  be  engaged  in  or  thinks 
only  of  the  consequences  to  himself.  We  all  know  the 
type  of  man,  now  happily  growing  scarcer,  that  in  private 
life  or  in  church  life  is  all  that  we  could  ask  for  in  kind- 
ness, gentleness,  generosity,  but  who  in  business  or  in  pro- 
fessional life  follows  the  relentless  policy  of  cut-throat 
competition,  paying  starvation  wages,  requiring  long  hours, 
and  employing  children  to  do  the  work  of  adults.  There  is 
no  doubt  that  this  successful  man  thinks.  But  he  thinks 
only  about  means.  The  ends  he  is  pursuing  or  the  conse- 
quences they  entail  do  not  occupy  his  attention.  The  values 
he  stands  for  in  private  life — good  will,  kindness,  fairness, 
— he  repudiates  in  public  life.  He  is  an  unorganized  or 
divided  personality.  He  has  failed  to  think  about  the  ulti- 
mate consequences  of  his  acts  and  to  harmonize  his  life 
according  to  some  purpose  which  he  has  deliberately  chosen 
to  follow  because  he  deems  it  to  be  the  highest  for  him. 
When  a  man  brings  his  purpose  into  the  thinking,  weighs 
carefully  the  relative  value  of  possible  ends  of  action, 
and  its  possible  consequence,  and  then,  with  his  whole 
soul,  follows  that  line  of  action  which  will  most  worthily 
accomplish  what  seems  to  him  to  be  the  best,  then  that 
man  is  religious.  If  the  purpose  he  follows  is  the  Chris- 
tian purpose,  and  if  the  means  he  employs  conform  to 
Christian  standards,  then  he  is  Christian.' 

Christian  character,  then,  is  the  way  of  meeting  the  varied 
situations  of  life  in  a  thoroughly  Christian  fashion.  It  is 
an  attitude — a  Christian  attitude — established  in  us,  which 
in  every  given  situation  will  seek  to  determine  the  sort  of 
choice  we  shall  make  and  the  kind  of  conduct  that  we 
shall  pursue.  It  involves  thinking,  that  one  may  know 
what  is  Christian  and  how  each  act  shall  eventuate;  it 
involves  habit,  that  these  choices  shall  have  become  so 
established  that  to  do  the  Christian  thing  becomes  constant 
and  natural;  but  it  requires  will  also,  for  these  choices 
must  frequently  be  made  in  opposition  to  the  more  animal 
and,  therefore,  more  immediately  compelling  desires.     To 


^Childhood  and  Character,  Hartshorne,  pages  169-70. 


THE  WORKER'S  TASK  87 

know  what  is  Christian  and  what  is  not,  to  determine  to  do 
what  is  Christian  and  not  to  do  the  opposite,  and  to  ac- 
custom oneself  to  face  life's  situations  in  view  of  this 
knowledge  and  this  determination  is  to  possess  Christian 
character. 

2.  The  many-sided  task.  The  task  before  the  worker 
with  these  pupils,  therefore,  is  many-sided.  By  some 
method  he  must  get  them  to  see  what  is  Christian,  to  dis- 
cover what  Christian  ideals  and  standards  are.  This  is  a 
matter  of  knowledge,  and  its  acquirement  is  under  the  laws 
of  the  learning  process,  just  as  is  the  attaining  of  any  other 
knowledge.  Study,  discussion,  comparison,  generalization, 
must  all  be  employed.  The  laws  of  the  mechanism  of  the 
mind  must  be  used  if  success  is  to  be  won. 

But,  as  has  so  often  been  repeated,  to  know  is  one  thing; 
to  do,  another.  Doing  is  determined  by  our  preferences  or 
choices.  We  do  the  thing  that  in  the  long  run  we  prefer; 
or,  as  it  is  often  stated,  we  do  the  thing  that  will  give  us 
the  greatest  satisfaction.  If  we  would  choose  the  Christian 
standard  of  action,  we  must  see  and  feel  that  that  standard 
will  best  satisfy  us.  This  means  that  we  must  come  to 
prefer  it,  to  love  it.  So  the  worker  with  teen-age  pupils 
must  find  some  means  of  getting  his  pupils  to  love  the 
Christian  life.  Not  only  must  they  know  what  is  Christian, 
but  they  must  be  taught  to  prefer  what  is  Christian. 

But  even  this  is  not  enough.  One  may  know  the  violin 
and  its  laws  of  musical  production  and  may  love  its  music 
better  than  any  other,  but  one  must  practice  if  one  would 
perfect  oneself  in  its  art.  Christian  living  is  an  art,  also, 
though  many  do  not  seem  to  have  discovered  this  fact.  The 
worker  with  teen-age  boys  and  girls  must  not  only  teach 
them  what  Christian  standards  are  and  inspire  them  with 
love  for  Christian  living,  but  he  must  give  them  practice  in 
the  art  of  such  conduct  if  he  would  have  them  make  their 
religious  life  habitual  and  easy  of  accomplishment.  More- 
over, in  the  actual  attempts  at  Christian  living  these  be- 
ginners need  much  practice  and  much  counsel.     Knowing, 


88  LEADERS    OP    YOUTH 

feeling,    and    doing   must   be    worked    into    a    harmonious 
whole,  lest  fateful  divisions  in  personality  ensue. 

3.  The  threefold  aim.  Summarized,  our  threefold  aim 
is  as  follows: 

1.  Fruitful  knowledge:  knowledge  of  religious  truths  that 
can  be  set  at  work  in  the  daily  life  of  the  child  now  and  in 
the  years  that  lie  ahead. 

2.  Right  attitudes:  the  religious  warmth,  responsiveness, 
interests,  ideals,  loyalties,  and  enthusiasm  which  lead  to 
action  and  to  a  true  sense  of  what  is  most  worth  while. 

3.  Skill  in  living:  the  power  and  the  will  to  use  the  re- 
ligious knowledge  and  enthusiasms  supplied  by  education 
in  shaping  the  acts  and  conduct  of  the  daily  life.^ 

The  "fruitful  knowledge"  must  be  found  in  the  material 
of  the  curriculum,  the  studies  that  shall  be  decided  upon 
for  this  department.  Year  by  year  such  courses  must  be 
pursued  as  shall  add  to  the  stock  of  knowledge  that  the 
pupils  already  possess  and  as  shall  furnish  information 
needed  for  their  immediate  and  future  life's  tasks. 

"Right  attitudes"  must  be  established  through  interest 
that  may  be  awakened  in  the  right  upon  its  presentation  in 
human  biographies  and  in  that  most  intimate  and  personal 
life  of  the  teacher  and  of  other  Christian  associates;  and, 
further,  through  the  satisfactions  that  are  found  in  doing 
the   right. 

The  personality  of  the  teacher  counts  for  more  than  all 
else.  His  own  life,  his  own  enthusiasm  for  the  Christian 
life,  becomes  contagious — the  "contagion  of  character"  of 
which  Hillis  writes — and  if  he  is  a  real  leader,  his  view- 
point and  ideals  are  adopted  by  his  youthful  companions. 

King-  has  given  us  a  series  of  retrospective  visions  of 
various  high-school  teachers  and  the  effect  that  they  pro- 
duced upon  their  students.  From  among  these  the  follow- 
ing has  been  taken  as   indicative  of  the  large  place  the 


1  How  to  Teach  Religion,  Betts,  page  48. 

2  From  The  High-School  Age,  by  Irving  King,  copyright,  1914.     Used  by 
specie!  permigsioa  of  the  publishers,  The  Bobbs-Merrill  Company. 


THE  WORKER'S  TASK  89 

personality  of  the  teacher  takes  in  the  lives  of  those  who 
come  under  him: 

"My  best  teacher  was  always  fair  and  just,  both  in  regard 
to  our  work  in  class  and  our  conduct  in  assembly  room. 
She  was  kind  when  we  tried  and  made  mistakes  and  never 
discouraged  us  by  sarcasm;  she  was  always  tastefully 
dressed  both  for  school  and  for  outside  affairs.  All  these 
characteristics  along  with  her  ever  readiness  to  help  and 
encourage  in  everything  that  concerned  us  made  her  a 
sort  of  model  for  us  all.  We  used  to  say,  'When  I  grow  up, 
I  am  going  to  be  just  like  Miss  L.'  " 

"The  high-school  teacher  who  stands  out  most  prominently 
in  my  mind  is  not  the  one  who  taught  with  the  greatest 
success  nor  the  one  who  seemed  to  have  the  best  education; 
but  rather  the  one  who  gave  us  all  she  had  of  sympathy  and 
interest.  Her  subject  was  English,  but  she  taught  us  more 
of  humanity  than  of  language  forms.  There  was  a  depth 
and  a  breadth  about  her  that  went  far  toward  giving  the 
boys  an  interest  in  school  life." 

"The  influence  of  some  of  these  teachers  will  have  a 
lasting  effect  upon  my  life,  and  I /am  sure  there  are  others 
who  will  say  the  same.  I  well  remember  the  little  woman 
who  for  three  years  occupied  the  principal's  chair — small  in 
stature  but  mighty  in  moral  principle.  It  was  she  who 
set  the  standard  for  right  doing  and  good  class  work  and 
refused  to  give  approbation  for  those  who  remained  be- 
low it." 

"As  I  have  mentioned  before,  there  was  a  certain  high- 
school  teacher  whom  I  respected  and  looked  up  to  as  a 
model  of  perfection.  She  made  me  unconsciously  take  a 
greater  interest  in  my  work  and  helped  me  to  build  up 
ideals  which  I  still  retain." 

One  of  these  days,  when  we  shall  be  able  to  parallel  these 
high-school  recollections  with  similar  studies  from  the 
Sunday  school,  we  shall  find  that  the  teacher  is  the  key 
to  interest,  to  ideals,  to  enthusiasm,  to  character  building. 

Loyalties  to  the  truth  and  to  the  institutions  that  stand 
for  the  truth  as  found  in  Christ  are  established  in  the 
activities,  social  and  recreational,  which  the  class  or  depart- 
ment must  furnish;  and  the  everyday  life  of  the  pupils 
is  discovered  to  them  as  furnishing  further  opportunities 
for  displaying  such  loyalties. 


90  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

"Skill  in  living"  must  be  developed  in  large  part  outside 
the  Sunday  school.  It  must  be  gained  in  the  actual  world  of 
school  and  home,  of  play  and  business.  But  the  leader  of 
these  youths  has  it  within  his  power  to  counsel,  to  warn, 
and  to  guide  by  his  example  in  working  out  the  ideals 
established  in  the  school.  The  hikes,  the  camping,  the 
recreations,  in  which  he  participates  with  the  young  friends, 
and  the  experiences  of  the  class  or  department  all  furnish 
him  peculiar  opportunities.  Further,  he  may  wisely  direct 
in  specific  tasks  of  fellowship  or  service,  of  comradeship 
or  of  genuine  moral  discipline,  which  shall  furnish  the 
pupils   with  real  experiments   in   Christian   living. 

The  fountain  of  all  enthusiasms,  of  all  knowledge  of 
Christian  standards,  and  the  key  to  all  such  loyalty,  since 
the  days  of  the  disciples  to  now,  have  been  found  in  per- 
sonal devotion  to  Jesus  Christ.  These  are  the  days  when 
such  personal  devotions  are  most  easily  made,  when  the 
entire  life  responds  most  gladly  to  the  summons  "Follow 
me."  More  than  at  any  other  time,  then,  should  the  re- 
ligious leader  aid  in  creating  actual,  sincere  attachment 
between  his  pupils  and  the  Master.  Christ  must  become 
the  dominant  power,  the  centralizing  and  organizing  force 
in  the  lives  of  these  boys  and  girls.  His  power  to  inspire, 
to  control  the  life  to  the  largest  and  best  ends  must  be  felt, 
and  that  power  and  control  must  be  sought  by  each. 

4.  Intermediate  aims.  The  aim  as  presented  above  has 
been  summarized  for  the  intermediate  worker  by  the 
Sunday  School  Council  of  Evangelical  Denominations  as 
follows : 

1.  To  secure  the  acceptance  of  Jesus  Christ  as  a  per- 
sonal   Saviour. 

2.  To  cultivate  an  ever-increasing  knowledge  of  Christian 
ideals  and  of  the  Bible  as  the  source  of  these  ideals. 

3.  To  secure  on  the  part  of  boys  and  girls  a  personal 
acceptance  and  open  acknowledgment  of  these  ideals  in 
their  daily  life,  through  Bible  study,  prayer.  Christian 
conduct,  recreation,   and  service. 

4.  To  awaken  in  boys  and  girls  a  growing  appreciation 


THE  WORKER'S  TASK  91 

of  the  privileges  and  opportunities  of  church  membership, 
that  they  may  come  to  have  a  deep  and  genuine  reverence 
for  the  Lord's  Day  and  the  Lord's  house. 

5.  To  secure  an  all-round  development  through  the  culti- 
vation of  the  social  consciousness  and  the  expression  of 
the  physical,  social,  and  religious  life  in  service  for  others. 

As  the  years  advance,  such  changes  in  aim  are  necessary 
as  shall  fit  into  the  growing  life  of  these  youths.  The 
senior  years  yield  added  opportunity  to  test  some  of  the 
ideals  that  the  earlier  years  have  established.  The  social 
consciousness  has  been  organizing  itself  more  completely. 
Larger  initiative  and  responsibility  have  come  into  being 
and  are  sensed.  Hence,  the  following  statement  of  aims 
has  been  determined  by  the  Council  for  the  senior  worker: 

5.  Senior    aims. 

1.  The  acceptance  of  Jesus  Christ  as  a  personal  Saviour. 
(Some  may  not  have  made  this  choice  as  yet.  Others  may 
renew  that  acceptance  on  the  new  plane  of  their  deeper 
emotional  experiences.) 

2.  The  testing  of  earlier  ideals  in  the  light  of  enlarging 
experience  and  the  consequent  adjustment  of  life  choices 
and   conduct. 

3.  The  expression  of  the  rapidly  developing  social  con- 
sciousness through  the  home,  church,  and  community. 

4.  The  development  of  initiative,  responsibility,  and  self- 
expression  in  Christian  service. 

6.  How  personality  grows.  The  personality  to  be  de- 
veloped during  these  years  is  not  a  "raw"  personality,  nor 
is  the  character  altogether  yet  to  be  made.  Personality  has 
been  for  twelve  years  in  the  making,  and  character  has 
been  forming  through  the  process  of  choice,  conduct,  the 
suppression  of  this  natural  inclination,  and  the  formation 
of  that  new  like  or  dislike.  In  this  Christian  land  these 
pupils  have  unconsciously  caught  much  of  its  ideals  and, 
though  they  have  not  thought  largely  upon  their  life 
philosophies,  they  have  been  "picking  up"  religious  and 
moral  information.  Their  presuppositions  have  been  es- 
tablished in  part,  and  their  attitudes  somewhat  formed. 
Moreover,  most  of  these  pupils  have  had  definite  Christian 


92  LEADERS    OF   YOUTH 

teaching  in  the  Sunday  school  and  at  home.  Already  they 
know  what  certain  of  the  Christian  standards  are,  though 
they  may  not  be  able  to  define  them.  They  have  discovered 
that  Christians  are  those  who  are  kind  yet  just  and 
honest,  that  generosity  and  service  are  appreciated.  In 
a  childish  way  Christ  has  been  loved.  The  church  has 
represented  organized  religion.  The  Bible  is  the  book  of 
their  religion.  They  may  and  likely  have  made  prayer  a 
fixed  habit. 

Now,  crude  as  these  ideas  are,  and  partly  formed  as  is  the 
character,  it  is  far  from  zero.  Upon  these  conceptions 
and  misconceptions  we  must  build.  This  character,  already 
forming,  must  go  on  to  more  perfect  development.  Because 
he  must  deal  with  this  material  already  wrought  upon, 
the  intermediate-senior  worker  must  know  something  of 
what  has  gone  before.  How  character  forms  and  what 
knowledge  is  gained  during  the  earlier  years  of  childhood 
are  essentials  for  further  leadership.  If  the  Sunday  school 
has  been  carefully  graded,  the  lessons  well  taught,  the 
spirit  of  worship  developed,  the  ideas  of  service  exemplified 
and  practiced,  the  task  will  be  far  different  from  that  of 
the  leader  whose  pupils  come  without  any  of  these  acquire- 
ments or  advantages.  For  the  worker  in  these  departments 
is  only  at  one  point  touching  lives  that  flow  on.  His  must 
be  the  task  to  mold  a  little.  The  sum  total  of  the  charac- 
ters that  are  being  wrought  out  is  the  result  of  many 
teachers,  companions,  influences.  But  what  he  does  is  of 
tremendous  importance  and  must  be  done  wisely  even 
though   quickly. 

One  who  has  read  thoughtfully  the  earlier  chapters  has 
discovered  the  forces  upon  which  he  can  rely  in  this  task 
of  reshaping  human  character  and  destiny.  These  forces 
include  the  desire  for  knowledge;  the  abounding  curiosity 
which  by  these  years  is  turned  toward  causal  relations, 
personal  efforts  in  conduct,  heroism,  interest  in  nature  and 
nature's  ways,  and  organization  for  social  achievement. 
The  "gang"  is  father  to  the  church,  the  state,  and  the  busi- 


THE  WORKER'S  TASK  93 

ness  enterprise  in  one.  Leadership  is  developing,  and  the 
qualities  of  leadership  are  richly  appreciated.  Further, 
the  simple  explanations  of  childhood  do  not  suffice.  Real- 
ism is  giving  place  to  crude  imagination,  while  imagination 
is  going  on  to  give  color  to  social  living. 

In  all  this  the  desire  to  know,  to  do,  to  achieve,  to  be 
worthy  of  praise,  to  unravel  mysteries,  and  to  live  with  the 
group  is  evident.  Need  anyone  point  out  that  upon  these 
very  characteristics  the  worker  may  rely  to  arouse  interest, 
to  stimulate  study,  to  secure  cooperation  in  his  enterprise? 
He  may  depend  on  the  social  impulse,  properly  encouraged 
and  exercised,  to  cement  his  class  together.  He  may  trust 
the  interest  in  heroes  and  their  moral  as  well  as  physical 
prowess  to  secure  attention  for  lesson  study.  He  may 
count  upon  the  hoy's  or  girl's  search  for  the  inner  meaning- 
fulness  of  life  to  give  him  a  hearing  regarding  its  bigness 
and  its  mystery.  He  may  depend  on  the  sense  of  growing 
personal  worth  to  demand  full-sized  tasks  in  thinking  and 
acting.  He  can  trust  the  new  life  that  is  springing  up  in 
youth  as  adolescence  passes  to  its  middle  period  to  require 
an  answer  to  its  perplexing  but  unvoiced  question,  "What 
is  this  world  and  what  is  my  place  in  it?"  These  are  not 
phrases  but  realities  that,  in  the  lives  of  the  young,  can 
be  brought  to  serve,  must  be  brought  to  serve,  the  purpose 
of  the  religious  worker  with  youth.  For  it  is  out  of  their 
natural  interests  as  these  interests  develop  and  manifest 
themselves  that  their  acquired  interests  grow.  What  is 
sought  is  a  compelling  interest  in  the  Christian  life,  to 
which  end  must  be  utilized  the  keen  intellectual,  social, 
and  emotional  powers  of  the  pupil. 

What  the  worker,  then,  is  attempting  at  this  age  is  to 
utilize  the  pupils'  experience,  their  dawning  instincts  and 
their  interests,  to  the  end  that  they  may  develop  thoughts, 
attitudes,  and  conduct  in  conformity  with  Christianity, 
discover  an  attractive  personality  in  Jesus  Christ,  and  be 
prepared  to  grow  further  in  Christian  knowledge  and  ex- 
perience. 


94  LEADERS    OF   YOUTH 

Questions 

1.  What  is  Christian  character,  and  what  does  it  involve? 

2.  What  is  the  threefold  aim  of  the  teacher,  and  how 
does  he  attempt  to  fulfill  each  aim? 

3.  What  conclusions  may  one  draw  from  the  "recollec- 
tions" of  one's  high-school  teachers? 

4.  State  the  aims  of  the  Intermediate  Department;  of 
the   Senior   Department. 

5.  Why  must  the  worker  with  these  pupils  know  what 
they  have  learned  in  the  earlier  grades? 

Observation 

Compare  a  boy  or  girl  of  nine  or  ten  with  another  of 
fourteen,  noting  their  interests,  knowledge,  skill,  motives. 
What  progress  can  you  discern  in  the  development  of  the 
older?    What  evidences  of  the  development  of  personality? 


CHAPTER  IX 
DEPARTMENTAL  ORGANIZATION 

1.  Self-expression  through  organization  and  man- 
agement. Intermediates  have  reached  the  age  when  op- 
portunities for  self-direction  and  self-expression  are  con- 
stantly sought.  It  is  the  very  life  of  boys  and  girls  from 
twelve  years  and  on  to  do  things  and  to  control  their  own 
doing.  How  far  shall  the  organization  of  the  Teen-Age 
Department  take  cognizance  of  this  phase  of  their  devel- 
opment? 

Before  answering  that  question  we  shall  have  to  under- 
stand quite  fully  the  moral  value  of  self-directed  living. 
We  come  into  the  world  altogether  helpless  creatures.  We 
arrive  at  manhood's  and  womanhood's  estate  to  find  that 
we  are  to  be  self-directing,  responsible  men  and  women. 
Between  these  two  extremes  we  pass  through  a  period  of 
acquiring  freedom.  As  rapidly  as  experience  gives  us  a 
background  for  judging,  and  as  proper  coordination  of 
thinking,  feeling,  and  acting  is  effected,  we  find  ourselves 
restive  under  restraint  and  demand  with  greater  or  less 
success  that  the  charge  of  our  lives  be  turned  over  to  us. 
More  than  this:  we  can  become  free  only  as  we  practice 
freedom.  The  limits  of  our  freedom  at  any  one  point  are 
fairly  well  defined  by  our  ability  to  handle  ourselves,  on 
the  one  hand,  and  by  the  success  we  display  in  fitting  into 
the  social  life  around  us,  on  the  other.  We  are  always  in 
the  process  of  achieving  freedom. 

Now,  truly  moral  living  is  living  happily  by  self-thought 
and  self-direction  in  the  social  group.  There  can  be  no 
true  morality  where  freedom  is  entirely  denied.  This 
means,  obviously,  that  if  the  Sunday  school  is  to  make 
moral  and  religious  men  and  women  out  of  boys  and  girls, 
plans  must  be  matured  by  means  of  which  spontaneous 
moral  and  religious  life  may  express  itself. 

95 


96  LEADERS    OP    YOUTH 

The  Intermediate-Senior  Departments  seem  to  be  un- 
usually good  places  for  experimentation  in  self-directed 
group  living.  If  the  Junior  Department  has  been  properly 
organized,  the  members  already  have  been  initiated  into  the 
art  of  class  and  department  organization,  of  committee 
work  and  group  thinking  and  acting.  If  not,  the  beginning 
of  personal  and  social  self-expression  should  by  all  means 
be  made  now. 

Recalling  the  liberty  of  action  permitted  American  youth 
in  home  and  school,  one  need  not  be  surprised  to  find  con- 
siderable initiative  manifested  among  them,  especially  as 
the  public  schools  are  endeavoring  to  do  away  with  their 
former  autocracy  and  to  function  as  schools  of  democracy. 
Classrooms  have  furnished  opportunity  for  discussion  and 
debate,  and  the  athletic  field  has  provided  excellent  chances 
for  organization  and  management. 

The  Sunday  school  must  take  cognizance  of  this  develop- 
ing social  consciousness  and,  in  the  organization  of  the  de- 
partment, should  plan  not  alone  for  direction  and  oversight 
but  also  for  thoroughgoing  self-direction. 

2.  Tlie  kind  of  organization  needed.  What  sort  of 
organization,  then,  is  required  to  meet  these  new  demands? 
How  far  shall  the  pupils  participate  in  the  active  control 
of  the  department? 

The  kind  of  organization  required  will  depend  in  part  on 
the  size  of  the  school.  In  small  schools  intermediates  and 
seniors  will  likely  be  thrown  together.  It  may  happen 
that  only  two  classes  will  represent  these  two  groups — one 
for  the  boys  and  the  other  for  the  girls.  In  general  it 
may  be  held  that  unless  there  are  at  least  two  classes  in 
each  department — four  classes  in  all — it  is  better  to  main- 
tain an  Intermediate-Senior  Department  than  to  attempt 
to  sustain  two  departments  separately.  For  practical  pur- 
poses it  may  be  advisable  to  keep  this  joint  relation  until 
six  or  eight  classes  are  reached.  But,  regardless  of  the 
size  of .  the  school,  an  Intermediate-Senior  Department  is 
always  possible. 


DEPARTMENTAL  ORGANIZATION 


97 


3.  A  suggestive  form  of  organization.  The  following 
is  a  simple  form  of  departmental  organization  for  an  In- 
termediate (twelve  to  fourteen)  or  Senior  Depart- 
ment (fifteen  to  seventeen),  or  for  an  Intermediate- 
Senior,  or  Teen- Age  (twelve  to  seventeen)  Department. 
The  form  is  not  original;  it  is  an  adaptation.  If  desired,  a 
constitution  may  be  formulated  and  adopted  by  the  de- 
partment: 

Form  of  Organization 
Oncers  Active  Advisory 

President.  Pastor 

Vice-president.  General  superintendent. 

Secretary.  Sunday-school  board. 

Treasurer.  Church  board. 

Department     superin- 
tendent, or  counselor. 


Committees 

of  the 
Department 


Name 
Executive 

Program 


Service 


Duties 
Usual  duties  of  such  a  committee. 

To  arrange  for  all  departmental 
sessions  except  socials.  The 
vice-president  is  chairman. 

To  see  that  the  department  and 
classes  have  regular  and  real 
missionary  education  and  service 
activities.  This  committee  works 
in  harmony  with  the  Sunday- 
school  missionary  committee. 

Recreation  To  plan  and  to  see  to  the  carry- 
ing out  of  the  recreational  and 
social  life  of  the  department,  se- 
lect ushers  and  "welcome"  door- 
keepers, etc. 

Note:  The  superintendent  of  the  department  and  the 
president  are  ex  officio  members  of  all  committees.  Each 
committee  should  have  a  teacher  as  adviser.  The  foregoing 
are  the  essential  committees;  others  may  be  added  as 
needed.  The  departmental  superintendent  and  the  teachers 
are  elected  by  the  responsible  board  of  the  church  or  school; 
the  other  officers  should  be  chosen  by  their  fellows. 


98  LEADERS    OP   YOUTH 

The  superintendent  is  responsible  to  the  administrative 
head  of  the  school  for  the  execution  of  school  plans  and  for 
the  success  of  his  own  unit  in  the  larger  organization.  If 
he  is  skillful,  he  will  find  his  chief  duty  to  lie  in  counseling, 
advising,  and  cooperating  with  his  teachers  and  pupils. 
Never  a  dictator  but  always  a  wise  counselor  and  friend, 
he  thinks  of  the  welfare  of  the  entire  department,  plans 
to  increase  its  size  and  efficiency,  defends  his  classes  from 
intrusions,  seeks  new  workers  for  his  field,  works  out  with 
the  appropriate  committees  programs  of  worship,  of  recrea- 
tion, and  of  service,  discovers  and  corrects  maladjustments 
in  the  organization,  and  is  the  constant  inspiration  of  the 
entire  group.  Through  reading  and  observation  he  has 
made  himself  master  of  the  available  knowledge  regarding 
his  department  and  through  personal  contact  with  teachers 
and  pupils  has  learned  their  problems  and  is  ready  to  help 
solve  them. 

The  president  of  the  department  is  officer  of  the  day,  its 
immediate  administrative  chief,  chosen  by  his  fellow  pupils 
and  teachers  because  of  his  fitness  for  the  task  and  for  the 
training  in  leadership  which  the  task  will  give  him.  He 
presides  over  the  departmental  worship  service  and  the 
social  meetings  of  the  group,  is  head  of  the  cabinet  (con- 
sisting of  the  officers  and  teachers  of  the  department)  and 
is  ex  oj^cio  member  of  all  committees.  The  vice-president 
fulfills  the  duties  of  the  president  in  the  absence  of  the 
latter  and,  for  the  sake  of  training  in  leadership,  sometimes 
in  his  presence.  As  chairman  of  the  program  committee  he 
is  largely  responsible  for  the  training  in  worship  that  the 
department  receives.      (See  Chapters  XI  and  XII.) 

The  secretary  should  keep  an  exact  record  of  the  enroll- 
ment and  attendance  of  the  department,  reporting  the  same 
to  the  general  secretary  of  the  school  and  also  providing 
for  giving  publicity  to  his  own  department.  The  business 
session  of  the  group  may  furnish  the  opportunity  for  such 
publicity;  charts  and  displays  may  be  utilized  in  the  de- 
partment rooms. 


DEPARTMENTAL  ORGANIZATION  9^ 

The  treasurer  should  keep  an  accurate  record  of  all  of- 
ferings, turning  them  over  to  the  general  treasurer  of  the 
school,  receiving  from  him  in  return  such  amounts  for 
current  expenses  and  service  activities  as  may  be  agreed 
upon.  All  such  information  of  receipts  and  expenditures 
should  be  made  public  to  all  members  of  the  department, 
that  giving  may  become  truly  educational. 

Undoubtedly  many  will  be  inclined  to  question  the  ad- 
visability of  placing  so  great  a  responsibility  upon  the 
young.  The  truth  is  that  we  are  only  just  discovering  how 
well  these  young  people  measure  up  to  such  demands.  This, 
does  not  mean  that  unguided  boys  and  girls  are  able  to 
plan  most  wisely  or  execute  most  perfectly.  It  is  vastly 
easier  for  adults  to  take  the  supervision  into  their  own 
hands.  But  such  adult  supervision  fails  to  train  in  self- 
direction  and  leadership,  an  essential  part  of  the  work  in  this 
department.  Experience  has  taught  that  youth  is  far  more 
capable  of  leadership  than  we  adults  have  thought,  and  that 
those  elected  to  these  offices  are  much  more  ready  to  seek 
and  to  take  advice  than  we  had  supposed. 

4.  The  organized  class.  Each  class  needs  to  be  consti- 
tuted an  organized  group  also  for  training  in  Christian  co- 
operation. Problems  arising  within  the  class,  plans  for 
midweek  activity,  campaigns  for  membership,  and  such 
other  matters  as  belong  to  class  life  should  originate  in 
and  be  open  for  the  discussion  of  each  class.  A  class  is 
"organized  to  do  something.  There  is  no  other  reason  for 
organization." 

The  relation  of  the  teacher  to  the  organized  class  has 
become  clearer  with  our  widening  experience.  He  becomes, 
because  of  his  own  personality,  the  leader  "of  the  gang,"  or 
group.  By  virtue  of  his  office  it  is  his  task  to  stimulate 
interest  in  lesson  study,  to  present  the  lesson,  and  to  help 
the  class  to  incorporate  in  life  the  truths  taught. 

What  shall  be  the  size  of  the  class,  that  it  may  best 
work  out  its  plans?  Because  of  the  social  interest  of  this 
group  a  larger  number  can  be  handled  in  this  than  in  the 


100  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

Junior  Department.  A  group  of  six  or  eight  boys  or  girls 
with  common  interests  and  similar  intellectual  ability  is 
large  enough  to  work  very  successfully.  On  the  other  hand, 
ten  to  twelve  is  not  too  large  a  number  to  work  well  to- 
gether if  the  teacher  is  able  to  inspire  a  real  group  spirit. 
The  smaller  number  has  the  advantage  of  the  closer  per- 
sonal contact,  more  thoroughgoing  understanding,  and  bet- 
ter class  work.  The  larger  group,  however,  has  an  advan- 
tage in  committee  work  and  in  midweek  activities.  Where 
classes  are  small  the  social  life  of  the  class  will  merge  more 
readily  in  the  common  interests  of  the  department,  whereas 
the  larger  classes  tend  more  naturally  to  build  up  their  own 
group  interests  distinct  from  the  interests  of  the  depart- 
ment. Those  leaders  who  wish  to  keep  the  department 
functioning  as  a  whole  will  find  it  decidedly  advantageous 
to  break  up  the  group  into  smaller  classes. 

5.  A  suggestive  form  of  organization  for  these 
classes. 

Officers. — President:  to  preside,  at  all  sessions  of  the 
class;  to  be  responsible  for  devotional  and  business  sessions 
of  the  class;  to  be  responsible  for  the  order  of  the  class; 
to  close  the  class  session;  to  give  every  member  of  the  class 
something  to  do. 

Note. — The  teacher  and  the  president  are  coworkers  in 
both  building  and  using  the  class.  To  this  end  he  and  the 
class  teacher  should  have  at  least  one  talk  each  week  about 
the  class. 

Vice-president  (to  be  found  among  seniors  only):  fills 
the  president's  office  when  needed;  is  chairman  of  the  pro- 
gram committee. 

Secretary:  to  keep  full  and  accurate  permanent  records 
of  the  class.  To  keep  the  weekly  attendance  and  report 
it  to  the  secretary  of  the  department. 

Note. — The  records  of  each  pupil  should  contain  the 
name,  address,  age,  relation  to  church,  school  grade,  occu- 
pation if  at  work,  date  of  joining  the  class  and  of  leaving 
it,  together  with  the  reason  for  leaving.  These  records  may 
be  in  a  book  or  on  cards. 

Treasurer:  to  receive  from  each  member,  upon  entering 
class,  his  offering;  to  keep  records  of  contributions  of  class; 
if  the  duplex  system  is  used,  to  keep  record  of  pledges  and 


DEPARTMENTAL  ORGANIZATION  101 

of  payments;  to  keep  the  members  of  the  class  informed  of 
the  objects  of  their  giving  and  of  amounts  received  and 
spent;  to  pass  on  to  the  department  treasurer  the  moneys 
of  the  class. 

Committees. — Executives:  made  up  of  the  teacher  and 
the  oflEicers  of  the  class;  to  develop  the  class  to  the  largest 
efficiency. 

Program:  in  senior  classes  only;  to  arrange  for  the  lesson 
courses  for  the  class;  to  see  that  missionary  and  temperance 
instruction  is  given;  to  arrange  for  a  class  program  that 
provides  actual  training  in  leadership  for  the  entire  group. 

Membership:  to  look  up  absentees;  to  seek  new  members 
for  the  class  or  the  school. 

Service:  to  plan  the  service  activities  of  the  class  such 
as  result  in  providing  aid  to  the  needy,  missionary  barrels, 
etc.      (See  Chapter  XV.) 

Recreation:  to  provide  at  least  once  each  month  for  some 
venture  "just  for  fun."  Social  and  business  sessions  may 
be  combined.     (See  Chapter  XII  for  list  of  activities.) 

Note. — Every  member  of  the  class  should  be  assigned  to 
one  of  these  committees  and  put  to  work  at  once.  The 
committee  on  recreation  is  omitted  from  the  intermediate- 
class  organization,  the  recreational  program  being  devel- 
oped by  the  teacher  and  president  jointly. 

6.  Hints  to  "workers  xritli  organized  groups.  The  ef- 
ficiency of  the  department  or  of  the  class  is  determined  not 
by  the  number  of  oflScers  and  committeemen  but  by  the  vital 
interest  created.  This  means  that  organization  must  grow 
up  from  within  rather  than  be  saddled  upon  the  pupils. 
They  must  make  their  own  rules  and  execute  them,  think 
out  their  own  problems  and  solve  them,  plan  their  own 
activities  and  be  allowed  to  execute  them.  To  do  all  this 
the  superintendent  and  teachers  will  need  enough  patience 
and  grace  to  be  willing  to  let  the  group  learn  by  its  blun- 
derings  quite  as  much  as  by  its  successes.  The  fun  of  the 
group  spoiled  because  the  committee  forgot  to  provide  re- 
freshments, an  hour  of  worship  made  tedious  because  the 
vice-president  had  no  program  or  a  poor  one,  foolish  and 
impossible  laws  enacted  which  cannot  be  executed, — these 
are  the  means  by  which  youth  learns  the  better  way  but 
also  the  experiences  that  try  the  soul  of  the  Sunday-school 


102  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

worker.  But  there  is  no  other  way  by  which  religious  and 
social  adjustment  can  be  so  quickly  brought  about  and  life 
come  to  its  own. 

Those  who  have  worked  with  pupils  of  this  age  have 
found  certain  things  imperative.  One  is  that  constant  and 
unremitting  effort  is  necessary  to  success.  However  well 
organized  the  department  or  each  class  may  be,  the  super- 
intendent of  the  department  is  the  key  person  in  the  larger 
group,  and  the  teacher  the  key  person  in  the  smaller  group. 
By  personal  solicitation,  by  advice,  by  urging,  by  use  of  the 
mail  and  of  the  telephone,  those  composing  the  groups  must 
be  made  to  feel  responsibility,  to  be  pushed  into  service. 
Memories  are  short,  and  initiative  soon  exhausts  itself  in 
our  youth.  Counselors  and  teachers  must  learn  the  difficult 
task  of  standing  back  while  others  do,  yet  all  the  time  see- 
ing that  things  are  really  accomplished. 

Another  fact  emphasized  by  experience  is  the  need  of 
programs.  The  tendency,  especially  in  youth,  to  let  things 
go  until  the  time  needed,  to  put  off  to-day  what  can  be  done 
conveniently  to-morrow,  is  well  known.  To  let  such  a  spirit 
dominate  is  fatal.  Nothing  must  be  left  to  chance:  hence 
the  need  of  frequent  committee  meetings,  of  cabinet  meet- 
ings, of  business  sessions  of  the  entire  class  or  of  the  whole 
department.  We  have  just  as  good  times  at  the  picnic,  on 
the  hike,  or  at  the  party  as  we  plan  for.  We  shall  get  in 
a  rut  if  we  are  not  constantly  planning  something  new. 
Everlasting  vigilance  is  the  price  of  success,  and  in  this 
department  double  vigilance  is  needed. 

A  third  factor  making  for  success  is  to  plan  far  ahead. 
A  few  months  in  advance  seem  to  the  members  of  the  de- 
partment too  far  away  to  be  real  and  to  need  immediate 
attention.  Yet  Christmas  is  upon  us  ere  we  know  it. 
Easter  comes  all  too  soon.  Field  Day  is  impossible  because 
it  had  not  been  thought  of  in  time.  A  program  of  worship, 
another  of  recreation,  another  of  service,  should  all  be 
made  out  early  in  the  year,  subject  to  such  modification  as 
will  become  necessary.    These  programs  should  have  in  out- 


DEPARTMENTAL  ORGANIZATION  103 

line  the  chief  features  to  he  incorporated  in  the  year's 
plans,  indicating  facts,  time,  and  place.  To  follow  such  a 
schedule  is  to  assure  success.  Without  it  one  is  often  lost 
because  at  the  moment,  and  in  the  light  of  to-day's  pressing 
need  the  larger  vision  is  absent. 

Last  of  all,  short  terms  of  office  have  proved  more  satis- 
factory than  long  tenure.  Again,  the  brevity  of  youth's 
enthusiasm  is  to  be  taken  into  account  as  well  as  the  ad- 
vantage of  increasing  the  numerical  possibilities  of  leader- 
ship through  experimentation.  It  may  be  that  the  least 
likely  pupil  will  prove  himself  a  real  master  when  the 
chance  comes  for  him  to  assume  responsibility.  At  any  rate, 
he  has  his  right  to  a  chance  to  prove  himself. 

The  end  of  the  department  and  of  class  organization  is 
not  organization,  let  it  be  repeated,  but  the  making  of 
character.  Therefore,  all  organization  should  show  fruits 
in  lives  trained  in  service,  in  leadership,  and  in  character 
growth. 

Questions 

1.  Why  should  the  pupils  of  these  departments  be  or- 
ganized? 

2.  What  officers  and  committees  are  needed  in  the  depart- 
ments? in  the  classes? 

3.  Should  we  permit  student  leadership  at  the  points 
where  failure  seems  inevitable? 

4.  Should  we  permit   mistakes   to  be   made? 

5.  What  relation  should  the  leader  sustain  to  his  group? 
Why  the  word  "counselor"? 

Observation 

Observe  an  organized  class  of  teen-age  pupils.  Does  the 
organization  function,  or  is  the  president  only  a  "phoney'* 
president?    Is  the  organization  on  paper  only? 


CHAPTER  X 
OUTFITTING  THE  DEPARTMENT 

1.  The  assembly  room.  We  have  indicated  the  need  for 
certain  modifications  in  the  present  housing  of  these  pupils. 
It  is  highly  desirable — well-nigh  imperative — that  we  pro- 
vide a  room  for  the  worship  of  the  group  and  a  separate 
room  for  the  instruction  of  each  class.  The  first  demand 
grows  out  of  a  recognition  of  the  needs  of  departmental  life. 
These  boys  and  girls  do  not  want  to  be  considered  one  with 
the  younger  element  of  the  school;  they  feel  grown  up  and, 
comparatively,  they  are  grown.  The  break  at  twelve  is 
genuine.  Social  cohesion  and  intellectual  comity  of  in- 
terests make  of  this  group  a  unit  distinct  from  those  be- 
low, and  their  limited  experience  cuts  them  off  from  those 
above. 

Further,  the  demand  for  worship  as  a  part  of  religious 
training  makes  necessary  an  assembly  room  in  which  the 
programs  planned  by  the  department  can  be  executed  with- 
out disturbing  the  remainder  of  the  school  and  without 
being  disturbed  by  the  other  departments.  This  room 
should  be  light,  well  ventilated,  and  in  every  respect  at- 
tractive in  appearance.  The  size  of  the  room  is  determined 
by  the  size  of  the  department,  but  certain  well-established 
rules  need  to  be  recognized  if  one  is  building  or  planning 
to  build.  The  floor  space  should  be  such  that  each  indi- 
vidual can  have  at  least  fifteen  square  feet;  that  is,  a  room 
15  by  30  feet  will  accommodate  thirty  pupils.  On  this 
basis  it  is  easy  to  determine  the  necessary  dimensions  of 
the  projected  assembly  room. 

Moreover,  sufficient  light  and  air  are  required  to  give 
necessary  ventilation.  Preferably,  if  possible,  two  sides 
should  be  exposed,  so  as  to  allow  for  light  at  side  and  back. 
If  this  is  not  possible,  additional  window  space  is  required 

104 


OUTFITTING  THE  DEPARTMENT  105 

at  the  side.  A  dark,  gloomy  room  is  not  provocative  of  the 
best  spirit  for  worship,  and  artificial  light  should,  for 
reasons  of  eyestrain  as  well  as  of  economy,  be  avoided. 

The  decorations  of  this  room  require  special  care,  a 
happy  combination  of  reposefulness  and  cheer.  For  color 
tones  of  the  wall  buff,  brown,  or  green  are  best.  The  wood- 
work should  harmonize.  Artistic  use  of  colors  lends  itself 
to  the  development  of  good  taste  and  gives  charm  to  the 
home  of  the  department. 

The  furnishings  for  the  departmental  assembly  room  are 
as  follows: 

(1)  A  piano,  kept  in  tune. 

(2)  A  table  for  the  use  of  president  and  counselor. 

(3)  A  table  or  desk  for  the  use  of  the  secretary  and 
treasurer.  This  table  should  be  near  the  entrance  to  the 
department  for  the  double  purpose  of  distributing  class 
records  and  envelopes  and  of  enabling  these  officers  to  keep 
oversight  of  the  door  in  the  temporary  absence  of  the 
welcome  committee. 

(4)  Chairs  of  comfortable  design  and  right  height.  These 
should  be  free  from  the  floor,  that  they  may  be  rearranged 
for   socials   and   other   departmental   activities. 

(5)  Pictures.  The  following  are  suggested  by  Athearn  in 
The  Church  School:  "The  Man  With  the  Hoe,"  Millet; 
"Moses,"  Michelangelo;  "Mona  Lisa,"  Da  Vinci;  "Sir  Gala- 
had," Watts;  "Christ  and  the  Rich  Young  Ruler,"  Hof- 
mann;  "The  Angelus,"  Millet;  "Frieze  of  the  Prophets," 
Sargent;  "Breaking  Home  Ties,"  Hovenden;  "The  Last 
Supper,"  Da  Vinci;  panoramic  view  of  Jerusalem. 

(6)  Bookcase.  This  may  be  of  a  design  suitable  to  hold 
the  reference  and  songbooks  of  the  department  and  may 
have  in  addition,  if  a  desk  is  not  otherwise  provided,  a 
compartment  for  additional  supplies  and  for  the  secretary's 
and  treasurer's  use. 

(7)  Cloakrack  or  cloakroom.  Preferably  the  cloakroom 
should  be  separate  from  the  assembly  room;  however,  some 
satisfactory    arrangement    for    caring    for    the    street    gar- 


106  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

ments  should  be  made  in  the  room  if  not  possible  else- 
where; and  by  all  means  one  should  see  that  it  is  used 
rather  than  let  the  pupils  sit  through  the  session  with 
heavy  outer  wraps  upon  them.  A  hat  in  the  hand  of  an 
intermediate  boy  is  an  excellent  weapon  with  which  to  hit 
his  neighbor.  One  preventive  of  such  conduct  is  to  have  a 
place  for  these  missiles  out  of  reach  of  mischievous  hands. 

(8)  Hymnbooks.  These  should  be  kept  in  the  bookcase 
during  the  week  to  be  distributed  Sunday  morning  before 
the  school  assembles.  At  the  latest  they  should  be  handed 
out  by  the  welcome  committee  to  each  person  as  he  enters. 
Keeping  these  books  in  good  order  furnishes  one  of  the 
department  service  activities.  The  character  of  such  song 
books  is  discussed  in  Chapters  XI  and  XII. 

(9)  Department  records.  These  should  include  a  card 
index  of  all  pupils,  the  cards  indicating  name,  address,  age, 
school  grade,  or,  if  at  work,  the  place  of  business,  and 
such  other  data  as  may  be  needed  in  the  work  of  the  de- 
partment. This  record,  unlike  the  class  record,  is  the 
permanent  property  of  the  department.  As  pupils  are  pro- 
moted or  leave  the  school,  this  fact  should  be  indicated  on 
the  card,  and  then  these  cards  should  be  filed  in  a  per- 
manent case  for  reference.  The  "live"  cards  should  be 
kept  by  themselves  for  constant  use. 

That  the  department  may  remember  the  birthdays  of  its 
members  a  birthday  record  (card  file)  may  be  kept,  the 
names  being  arranged  by  month  rather  than  alphabetically. 
Thus  the  person  in  charge  will  have  no  difficulty  in  send- 
ing birthday  cards  or  an  appropriate  reminder  at  the 
proper   time. 

A  permanent  loose-leaf  record  book  in  which  to  keep  the 
record  of  all  business  of  the  department,  including  at- 
tendance and  offerings,  programs  followed  at  worship  or 
in  recreation,  together  with  the  service  activities,  should 
also  be  a  part  of  the  equipment  of  the  department.  Without 
such  record  by  means  of  which  one  may  look  back,  check 
up  this  year's  work  with  last,  utilize  valuable  suggestions 


OUTFITTING  THE  DEPARTMENT  107 

a  second  time,  avoid  blunders,  and  generally  keep  alive 
to  the  development  of  the  departmental  experience  and 
progress,  one  who  acts  as  counselor  will  have  to  trust  to 
faulty  memory.  Exactness  in  record  is  always  to  be  desired 
if  real  progress  is  sought. 

The  secretary  and  treasurer  may  keep  their  records 
separate  from  the  above  book,  using  for  the  purpose  loose- 
leaf  record  books  or,  better,  large  filing  cards.  Every  item 
of  receipt  and  expenditure  should  be  recorded  and  open  to 
the  inspection  of  every  member  of  the  department.  Pub- 
licity is  well  not  only  for  its  educational  value  to  the  givers 
but  also  for  its  reaction  upon  those  charged  with  public 
affairs.  They  are  only  custodians  of  others'  funds,  and  it 
is  especially  important  just  at  this  age  that  trusteeship 
should  be. uppermost  in  the  minds  of  those  elected  to  office. 

2.  The  classrooms.  Turning  now  to  the  needs  of  each 
class,  we  are  emphatic  in  repeating  that  each  class  needs 
its  own  room.  It  should  be  a  real  room,  and  not  a  stall. 
Makeshifts  such  as  that  proposed  in  many  modifications  of 
the  old  Akron  plan  of  Sunday-school  architecture  are  de- 
lusions and  not  to  be  considered  ideal  in  any  particular. 

As  the  classes  vary  in  size,  so  the  rooms  will  have  to 
vary  likewise.  The  intermediate  classes  are  smaller  in 
general  than  are  the  senior  classes.  The  social  develop- 
ment of  those  older  demands  a  larger  group  for  its  satis- 
faction. Hence,  while  the  intermediates  number  from  six 
to  ten  to  a  class,  the  seniors  number  from  ten  to  twenty. 
Floor  space  in  these  classrooms  must  meet  not  only  the 
requirements  relative  to  proper  air  capacity  but  be  large 
enough  to  admit  of  a  table,  around  which  the  class  sits,  or 
armchairs,  which  require  more  space  than  the  ordinary 
chair.  Ten  by  15  feet  is  too  small  for  the  smallest  class, 
and  15  by  20  is  scarcely  large  enough  for  the  older  group. 

It  will  demand  considerable  thought  and  skill  to  place 
these  rooms  in  the  ordinary  church  structure  so  as  to 
permit  sufficient  light  and  ventilation.  Accessibility  to  the 
assembly  room  is  desirable  but  not  so   desirable  as   com- 


108  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

modious  recitation  rooms,  for  at  this  age  the  pupils  find 
moving  from  one  part  of  the  building  to  another  an  easy 
matter.  Perhaps  we  shall  find  that  the  easiest  solution  and 
the  only  satisfactory  one  is  to  build  the  Sunday-school 
building  separate  from  the  church  altogether,  thereby  per- 
mitting the  development  of  a  style  of  architecture  thor- 
oughly adapted  to  Sunday-school  needs.  In  the  meantime 
a  corridor  is  not  an  insuperable  barrier  between  classrooms 
and  assembly  rooms. 

3.  The  intermediate  classrooms.  The  furnishings  of 
the  intermediate  classrooms  are  as  follows: 

(1)  Chairs.  These  should  be  of  such  height  as  to  insure 
comfort ;  the  simple  designs  are  to  be  preferred. 

(2)  A  table.  This  should  be  large  enough  to  permit  each 
pupil  comfortable  seating  and  working  space  about  it. 
Writing,  map  drawing,  notebook  work,  the  use  of  stereo- 
scopic views  and  other  pictures,  all  demand  a  table.  Fur- 
ther, the  class  spirit  develops  about  the  informality  and 
sociability  afforded  by  a  common  table.  With  every  face 
turned  inward  discipline  and  interest  are  made  easy. 

(3)  Filing  cases.  Unless  the  table  is  unusually  well 
supplied  with  drawers,  filing  cases  will  be  necessary,  that 
each  pupil  may  care  for  his  tools — pencils,  pens,  crayons, 
library  paste,  yet-to-be-used  pictures,  etc.  A  Bible  should 
be  in  each  filing  case,  American  Revised  Version  preferred. 

(4)  Bookcase.  This  case  is  for  reference  books  and 
should  be  ample  enough  to  care  for  the  filing  cases  when 
not  in  use. 

(5)  Maps.  Maps  of  Bible  lands  and  of  missionary 
fields  are  valuable  additions  to  the  equipment. 

(6)  A  small  hand  dictionary  is  indispensable. 

(7)  One  or  two  well-selected  pictures  add  to  the  at- 
tractiveness of  the   room. 

The  decoration  of  this  room,  like  the  assembly  room, 
should  be  in  good  taste.  Curtains  at  windows  add  ma- 
terially to  its  attractiveness  and  homelike  appearance. 
Flowers,  as  often  as  possible,  should  be  provided  for  the 


OUTFITTING  THE  DEPARTMENT  109 

class  hour.  Everything  that  will  stimulate  and  guide  the 
aesthetic  sense  should  be  encouraged,  for  just  now  youth  is 
emerging  from  the  seeming  indifference  of  childhood  to  the 
larger  appreciations  of  early  maturity. 

4.  The  senior  classrooms.  Except  for  size,  these  are 
almost  identical  with  the  foregoing.  One  difference  in  fur- 
nishings should  be  noted.  Seniors  prefer  the  arm-  or  desk- 
chair  to  the  table.  Especially  is  this  change  necessary  in 
the  interest  of  economy  of  space.  If  anything  except  the  ob- 
jectionable lecture  method  is  used,  it  will  be  found  neces- 
sary to  have  some  depository  for  the  pupils'  books.  The 
drawer  beneath  the  seat  of  the  desk  chairs  is  a  good 
receptacle  for  pencils,  paste,  etc.  The  desk  itself  will 
afford  ample  room  for  such  constructive  work  as  should 
be  undertaken  in  class.  At  the  same  time  these  chairs 
serve  admirably  as  general-utility  chairs  for  socials  and 
other  gatherings. 

Where  chairs  are  used  without  the  common  table,  a 
small  table  for  the  use  of  the  class  president  and  the  coun- 
selor is  needed.  . 

5.  Hoiv  to  make  the  most  of  present  equipment. 
Some  reader  has  been  saying:  "These  are  ideal  conditions, 
but  what  about  us  who  have  not  and  cannot  expect  to  have 
any  such  things?  Is  there  nothing  for  us  but  to  go  on  in 
the  same  old  discouraging  way  with  the  same  inconveni- 
ences?" 

Certainly  there  is  a  better  way.  But  before  trying  to  fix 
up  our  present  limited  quarters,  made  in  a  day  before  re- 
ligious education  was  seriously  undertaken,  it  is  well  to 
get  before  our  eyes  the  ideal  toward  which  we  are  strug- 
gling. In  truth,  and  to  put  it  baldly,  this  tantalizing  picture 
of  the  ideal  has  been  held  up  to  help  us  see  just  how  inade- 
quate is  our  present  equipment  and  how  difficult  is  any 
thoroughgoing  palliative.  What  is  needed,  let  us  say  bluntly, 
is  not  to  fix  over  the  old  but  to  build  anew.  Basements, 
disused  corners,  cubby-holes,  and  closets  can  never  make 
ideal    classrooms.      Too    many — alas! — are    content    to    let 


110  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

things  stand  as  they  are,  willing  to  make  minor  modifica- 
tions but  opposed  to  such  sweeping  changes  as  are  de- 
manded by  the  child  life  and  youth  of  our  churches.  In 
a  community  of  comparative  prosperity  it  is  little  short  of 
tragic  to  see  the  inadequate  equipment  provided  by  the 
adults  of  the  church  for  their  own  boys  and  girls.  If  one 
wonders  why  these  same  youths  leave  the  church  just  when, 
by  all  the  facts  of  their  developing  natures,  they  ought  to 
be  most  closely  cemented  to  it,  the  answer  may  be  found 
in  considerable  part  just  here.  We  are  not  willing  to  invest 
in  young  lives. 

But  to  make  some  constructive  suggestions:  First,  the 
one-room  type  of  church  if  located  in  a  climate  not  too  cold, 
may  expand  its  building  by  utilizing  Uncle  Sam's  idea  of  a 
hut.  A  hut  designed  after  those  found  in  the  late  canton- 
ments may  be  built  by  the  members  of  the  Intermediate- 
Senior  Department  at  small  cost,  much  of  the  material 
being  obtained  through  solicitation.  The  assembly  room 
and  sufficient  class  rooms  will  thus  be  furnished.  The 
building  enterprise  will  furnish  a  wholesome  outlet  to 
youthful  enthusiasm.  It  becomes  a  service  activity,  for  the 
building  will  be  used  by  others  besides  those  who  are 
building  it.  The  work  will  develop  church  loyalty,  for 
every  concrete  endeavor  for  the  church  will  increase  one's 
loyalty  to  the  institution.  Simplicity  of  design,  modesty 
in  decoration,  and  comfort  in  equipment  make  these  huts 
real  additions  to  the  rural  church.  They  may  become  the 
center  of  community  service  and  may  develop  community 
spirit.  They  may  easily  be  transformed  into  centers 
for  the  social  life  of  the  church.  If  the  latter  is  desired, 
adults  will  do  well  to  cooperate  to  the  extent  of  providing 
such  necessary  additions  as  a  kitchen  and  the  equipment 
with  which  to  serve  a  considerable  social  gathering.  This 
building,  it  goes  without  saying,  should  be  located  adjacent 
to  the  church. 

A  second  suggestion  looks  toward  the  utilization  of  the 
existing  structure.     Curtains  and  screens  will  easily  divide 


OUTFITTING  THE  DEPARTMENT  111 

the  cne-room  church  into  a  series  of  classrooms.  To  be 
sure,  the  curtains  or  the  screens  are  not  soundproof  but 
they  are  eyeproof,  and  that  is  a  great  advantage.  By  re- 
ducing the  "general  exercises"  of  the  school  to  about  ten 
minutes'  time  will  be  allowed  for  each  department  to  follow 
its  own  program  behind  the  screens — if  singing  is  omitted. 
As  for  class  work  the  improvised  classrooms  serve  fairly 
well. 

Certain  additions  in  the  form  of  "wings"  may  be  made  to 
the  church  structure,  thus  providing  additional  space.  De- 
nominational boards  will  furnish  drawings  showing  how 
such  modifications  may  be  brought  about. 

We  must  constantly  keep  in  mind  that  the  whole  move- 
ment toward  departmental  Sunday-school  work  is  recent, 
that  the  machinery  for  carrying  this  into  effect  is  only 
newly  organized,  and  that  last  of  all  comes  equipment  for 
making  effective  our  ideals  and  our  best  efforts.  None 
needs  to  be  discouraged  over  the  present  lack  of  accommo- 
dation; only  he  who  remains  satisfied  with  the  present 
inadequacies  is  to  be  condemned.  The  divine  discontent 
with  what  now  is,  coupled  with  a  clear  vision  of  what  ought 
to  be,  is  the  sure  guarantee  of  new  and  better  things.  Mak- 
ing the  most  of  what  now  exists  is  the  first  step  toward 
something  better.  A  clear  ideal  as  to  what  one  needs  is 
the  next  step.  An  unfailing  faith  that  the  Christian  people 
will  provide  the  better  things  as  soon  as  they  are  con- 
vinced of  their  indispensability  must  bring  the  better 
things  to  actuality. 

Questions 

1.  What  should  be  the  size  of  a  room  for  an  intermediate 
class  of  ten  pupils?  a  senior  class  of  twenty-five  pupils? 

2.  How  should  the  equipment  of  an  intermediate  class- 
room differ  from  the  equipment  for  a  senior  room? 

3.  What  department  records  should  be  kept? 

4.  Should  intermediates  use  full-sized  chairs?  Should 
seniors? 


tl2  LEADERS    OF   YOUTH 

5.  Mention  some  works  of  art  suitable  for  the  Inter- 
mediate-Senior Department. 

Observation 

List  your  present  equipment.  Describe  the  room  and 
furniture  briefly.  Compare  what  you  have  with  the  fore- 
going suggestions.  Is  there  any  way  by  which  your  present 
equipment  can  be  improved?  Look  carefully  over  your 
entire  church  building  and  grounds  to  discover  possibilities 
of  improvement.  Construct  a  fairly  accurate  picture  of 
your  needs,  being  conservative  In  your  planning.  Present 
the  statement  of  "The  Needs  of  the  Intermediate-Senior 
Department  of  Our  Church"  at  a  meeting  of  the  Sunday- 
school  board  or  the  workers'  conference. 


CHAPTER  XI 
CHARACTER  THROUGH  WORSHIP 

The  lowest  rungs  in  the  intellectual  ladder  are  our  feel- 
ings. We  are  angry  or  pleased,  we  hate  or  love,  long  before 
our  rationalizing  processes  are  brought  into  play.  The 
easiest  way  to  direct  action  is  to  stimulate  emotions. 
These  constitute  the  dynamic  of  conduct.  Emotions 
thought  about,  rationalized,  and  organized  become  senti- 
ments, now  dominating  conduct  not  in  an  irresponsible, 
chaotic  fashion  but  as  well-defined  and  powerful  directive 
forces. 

To  illustrate:  The  mother's  care  produces  in  every  nor- 
mal child  a  response  of  love  or  affection,  spasmodic, 
ephemeral,  but  instant  upon  the  recognition  of  some  benefit 
received  by  the  child.  With  growing  intelligence  to  dis- 
cover the  constant  watchfulness  and  service  in  the  mother's 
life,  this  spontaneous  and  spasmodic  outburst  of  love  be- 
comes an  abiding  sentiment  of  affection  and  gratitude,  gov- 
erning the  relations  between  child  and  parent.  Such  senti- 
ment, acquired  only  toward  maturity,  is  the  compensation 
of  motherhood.  It  is  emotion  mixed  with  intelligent  per- 
ception of  all  that  the  mother's  care  has  meant  in  sacrifice 
and  service  and  a  consequent  knowledge  of  responsibility. 
With  all  this  is  commingled  an  idealism  that  makes  "my 
mother  the  best  woman  in  all  the  world." 

1.  Cultivating  religious  emotions.  It  is  a  matter  of 
surprise  that  the  intelligent  cultivation  of  the  religious 
emotions  should  have  received  so  little  attention  from 
Sunday-school  workers  in  view  of  the  fundamental  place 
that  the  emotions  hold  in  shaping  conduct.  True,  the 
Sunday  school  has  long  attempted  to  play  upon  the  emo- 
tions, these  attempts  ranging  all  the  way  from  gushing  over 

113 


114  LEADERS    OF   YOUTH 

the  "dear  children"  to  the  most  lurid  and  gruesome  stories 
used  to  "illustrate  the  lesson."  As  one  Jewish  mother  who 
was  sending  her  children  to  a  Christian  Sunday  school 
questioned,  "Why  do  they  tell  such  awful  stories  to  my 
children  and  send  home  such  terrible  pictures?"  But  in- 
telligently to  consider  what  may  be  done  to  cultivate  proper 
emotions  regarding  God  and  his  work  has  remained  for  the 
present  day.  For  the  first  time  it  is  being  asked,  What 
emotions  are  being  aroused  by  worship,  by  teaching,  and 
T3y  personal  example?  How  far  do  the  atmosphere  and 
surroundings  of  the  Sunday-school  room  or  rooms  stimulate 
wholesome,  helpful  emotional  responses?  And  those  ac- 
tivities, recreational  and  philanthropic,  are  being  sought 
which  shall  not  only  "keep  the  young  folk  busy"  but  shall 
cultivate  right  emotional  reactions. 

For  all  of  life,  the  play  life  of  the  child  quite  as  much 
as  the  Sunday-school  life,  is  involved  in  stimulating  the 
emotions.  Every  act,  we  are  assured,  has  its  emotional 
accompaniment.  And,  as  it  is  acts  and  thoughts  that 
specifically  arouse  emotions,  one  will  have  to  go  back  to 
the  acts  and  the  thoughts  of  the  pupils  if  he  would  culti- 
vate their  emotional  life.  Right  acts  produce  right  emo- 
tions, but  right  emotions  become  the  dynamic  to  produce 
right  acts.  This  sounds  like  arguing  in  a  circle;  but,  on 
the  contrary,  our  very  natures  are  so  constituted  that 
thought,  feeling,  and  action  are  indissolubly  linked  together. 
To  think  a  good  thought  gives  rise  to  the  incipient  desire 
to  put  the  thought  in  action,  to  feel  the  good  thought  to 
the  doing  of  it.  And,  contrariwise,  to  do  a  good  act  en- 
hances the  good  feeling  accompaniments. 

2.  Religious  worship  as  fellowship.  Moreover,  to  get 
right  relations  established  between  persons  the  feelings 
must  be  cultivated.  This  cultivation  comes  about  in  the 
process  of  kindness  and  service  that  each  shows  to  the 
other;  but  the  end  of  real  fellowship  is  not  gained  until 
there  is  established  that  camaraderie,  that  understanding 
and  mutual  appreciation,  which  lie  outside  the  reasoning 


CHARACTER  THROUGH  WORSHIP       115 

powers  deep  down  in  the  affections.  In  every  religion  some 
understanding  between  the  worshiper  and  his  God  or  gods 
is  sought,  some  fellowship  established.  In  the  Christian 
religion  that  fellowship  is  believed  to  be  most  intimate 
and  personal — a  fellowship  so  deep,  so  profound,  that  it 
colors  all  of  life.  Christian  worship  is  the  endeavor  to 
create  and  express  that  fellowship,  and  its  acts  are  the 
practices  that  help  to  create  the  emotion  involved  in  it. 
Other  acts  help  to  create  these  emotions  also,  as  acts  of 
service  and  the  daily  life  lived  in  accordance  with  the  God 
ideals.  But  worship  specifically  sets  itself  the  task  of 
creating  fellowship  emotions.  Where  these  emotions  be- 
come sentiments  governing  the  whole  life  they  organize 
and  direct  the  otherwise  fitful  chaotic  emotional  nature 
and  thus  help  to  shape  the  individual's  character. 

What  are  these  acts  that  thus  create  and  express  the 
emotional  life  of  religion?  It  is  interesting  to  note  that 
they  are  strikingly  alike  the  world  over.  They  are  prayer, 
praise,  meditation,  and  reading;  group  ceremonies,  com- 
posed of  the  items  just  mentioned  and,  at  times,  of  sacri- 
fice or  other  religious  customs;  oratory  and  instruction; 
abstinence;  and  religious  converse.  Sometimes  emphasis 
has  been  placed  on  one  and  at  other  times  on  another  of 
these  "religious  exercises";  but  all  have  received  recog- 
nition at  various  times  and  in  all  religions. 

In  prayer,  from  the  crudest  incantation  of  the  savage  to 
the  most  highly  intellectual  petition  of  the  most  cultivated, 
the  end  has  been  to  put  oneself  in  articulate  touch  with 
the  Deity,  to  express  one's  deepest  emotions  and  to  declare 
one's  loyalty  and  regard.  Whatever  the  objective  outcome 
of  prayer,  its  greatest  service  is  found  in  bringing  the 
petitioner  into  conscious  union  with  the  desires  and  pur- 
poses of  his  God.  "Not  my  will  but  thine  be  done"  is  the 
end  of  all  prayer,  a  feeling  of  conscious  fellowship  with 
God  to  the  end  that  his  purposes  may  be  fulfilled. 

In  praise  the  worshiper  lifts  his  heart,  his  feelings,  in 
joyful  appreciation  of  the  love  and  care  shown  by  his  God. 


116  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

The  end  of  praise  is  to  express  the  love  and  joy  that  well 
out  of  a  heart  conscious  of  its  benefactions  and  of  the  pro- 
tections afforded  it. 

Reading  and  meditation  are  intended  to  fix  the  mind 
on  thoughts  of  the  divine  and  of  his  purposes,  plans,  and 
goodness,  to  the  end  that  the  life  may  yield  itself  in  loyal 
service  to  his  will.  On  the  one  side  is  the  desire  for  better 
understanding  of  the  purposes  of  God — an  intellectual 
process — ;  but  on  the  other  is  the  purpose  to  surrender  the 
life  in  joyous  accord  to  that  will  as  it  becomes  known. 
This,  then,  is  also  cultivation  of  the  feelings. 

Group  ceremonies  tend  to  enhance  the  individual's  emo- 
tions through  the  fellowship  of  the  group.  Group  con- 
tagion intensifies  that  which  the  individual  alone  feels  in 
less  degree.  One  is  caught  in  the  feelings  of  the  group  and 
finds  his  own  emotions  greatly  augmented  thereby. 

By  oratory  the  group  is  carried  to  new  heights  of  feeling 
and  of  resolve,  the  emotions  of  the  speaker  being  caught 
by  the  crowd  and  intensified  by  force  of  group  contagion. 
Instruction  is  addressed  primarily  to  the  intellect,  but 
the  force  depended  on  to  put  the  truth  taught  into  life  is 
the  awakened  emotions  of  the  audience. 

Abstinence  is  the  endeavor  to  control  emotions  that  tend 
away  from  the  highest  endeavor  and,  by  centering  the 
thought  on  self-abnegation,  to  enhance  spiritual  desires. 
The  extremes  to  which  this  has  been  carried  should  not 
blind  one  to  emotional  enkindling,  which  such  practices 
have  wrought.  In  extreme  forms  abstinence  has  so  weak- 
ened the  physical  organism  that  overwrought  feelings  have 
played  queer  pranks,  creating  illusions,  visions,  voices,  and 
the  like.  In  the  saner  form  abstinence  or  temperance  has 
become  self-control,  to  the  end  that  the  emotional  nature 
might  function  more  rationally. 

Religious  converse,  or  testimony,  has  served  to  stimulate 
such  verbal  expression  as  should  in  turn  arouse  the  emo- 
tions and  thus  pledge  the  will  to  greater  endeavor.  It  has 
tended   to   keep    before   the   mind    spiritual    ideals    and    to 


CHARACTER  THROUGH  WORSHIP  117 

warm  these  ideals  over  the  fires  of  the  heart's  expressed 
desires. 

Now,  let  us  be  clear  at  one  point.  These  practices  have 
not  grown  up  because  man  has  said:  "Go  to!  Let  us  culti- 
vate our  religious  feelings.  Let  us  pray,  that  we  may  feel 
in  touch  with  God.  Let  us  praise,  that  we  may  feel  joyful. 
Let  us  read  and  meditate,  that  we  may  yield  ourselves  in 
loyal  service  to  Him.  Let  us  sacrifice  and  follow  other  re- 
ligious customs,  that  we  may  increase  our  own  religious 
feelings.  Let  us  listen  to  the  religious  speaker,  that  our 
feelings  may  be  aroused.  Let  us  fast  and  give  our  testi- 
mony, that  we  may  stir  up  our  emotions."  Quite  the  con- 
trary, these  customs  grew  up  every  one  out  of  some  pressing 
need  which  each  answered.  We  needed  to  ask  God's  help, 
and  we  prayed;  our  joy  overflowed,  and  we  praised.  The 
processes  came  naturally  as  our  religious  natures  expanded. 
But  for  the  present  we  are  looking  to  see  how  these  acts 
of  worship  function  and  we  shall  find  that  their  greatest 
contribution  is  in  the  realm  of  the  emotions.  They  serve 
to  build  up,  to  fortify,  and  to  conserve  the  emotional  life 
as  it  expresses  itself  toward  the  objects  of  religious  regard. 

One's  perspective  should  also  be  clear.  There  is  danger 
that  religious  emotions  shall  take  the  place  of  religious 
life,  that  they  shall  eventuate  in  a  craving  for  more  emo- 
tions and  for  the  satisfactions  that  come  from  their  own 
enjoyment.  Religious  emotions  and  their  cultivation  are 
never  ends;  they  are  the  means  to  ends,  the  ends  being 
Christian  conduct.  How  we  shall  prevent  such  "short 
circuiting"  of  our  emotional  life  we  shall  see  presently. 
Now  it  is  essential  that  we  discover  plainly  that  to  leave 
the  emotions  uncultivated  is  to  miss  getting  at  the  root  of 
the  religious  life  of  youth.  The  feeling  life  of  boys  and 
girls  must  be  enlisted  if  we  would  make  religion  dynamic 
in  their  lives.  We  must  help  establish  those  practices,  both 
in  their  private  lives  and  in  their  group  living,  which  shall 
cultivate  and  train  right  religious  emotions;  for  these  are 
the  years  when  the  emotional  nature  is  coming  to  its  best, 


118  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

when  for  all  after  years  the  feelings  are  to  determine  what 
the  life  shall  be.     How,  then,  shall  we  go  about  it? 

3.  Cultivating  private  devotions.  The  first  task  be- 
fore us  is  to  help  the  boys  and  the  girls  in  their  own  private 
lives  to  practice  daily  religious  devotion.  This  can  be 
l3rought  about  most  easily  by  assuming  that  every  well- 
regulated  Christian  man  or  woman  has  such  fixed  habits; 
in  other  words,  by  making  these  practices  the  most  natural 
thing  in  the  world.  Such  assumptions  come  out  quite  in- 
cidentally in  class  discussion.  Reference  can  be  made  to 
famous  characters  who  have  been  known  to  acknowledge 
such  practices  as  necessary  to  their  religious  living.  Was 
it  not  Charles  Dickens  who  said  that  every  night  since  his 
childhood  days  he  had  repeated  the  prayer  his  mother 
taught  him?  Is  it  not  known  that  Lincoln  and  Lee  both 
resorted  frequently  to  prayer?  Examples  can  be  multi- 
plied. 

A  second  essential — or  is  it  the  first? — is  that  the  teacher 
should  himself  know  and  exhibit  the  results  of  such  habits. 
It  is  useless  to  attempt  to  train  the  young  in  ways  we  know 
not  of  ourselves.  Such  daily  strengthening  of  the  teacher's 
own  inner  life  will  consciously  manifest  itself  to  the  pupils. 
Not  only  will  his  own  soul  grow,  but  he  will  find  that  his 
class  will  become  involved  in  his  daily  prayer  and  medita- 
tion, thereby  augmenting  his  power  in  their  lives.  He  will 
teach  of  God  as  one  who  knows  him  by  personal  contact 
and  as  a  living  Presence. 

But  something  more  definite  is  needed  even  if  it  seem 
more  mechanical  if  he  would  achieve  the  ends  he  desires. 
This  is  the  time  of  life  when  rules  and  regulations  loom 
large,  especially  if  they  be  self-imposed  rules.  It  will 
strengthen  the  purposes  of  the  class  jointly  to  hit  upon 
some  plan  of  action  that  shall  be  supported  by  their  mutual 
purpose  and  common  experiences.  If,  after  mature  de- 
liberation and  of  their  own  volition,  the  class  can  determine 
upon  a  definite  plan  of  daily  Bible  reading  and  of  prayer,, 
if  themes  for  daily  prayer  can  be  agreed  upon,  it  will  give 


CHARACTER  THROUGH  WORSHIP  119 

this  personal  devotional  life  the  push  of  a  group  enterprise 
and  will  fortify  it  with  such  definiteness  and  direction  as 
shall  more  likely  insure  success.  This  plan  can  well  he 
arranged  so  as  to  work  in  with  the  lessons;  or  the  pocket 
Testament  can  be  used,  each  member  possessing  a  copy  and 
reading  and  marking  it  under  the  direction  of  the  class 
committee  on  devotions.  Such  a  program  requires  that 
the  teacher  shall  be  a  party  to  it.  To  make  it  effective  he 
must  submit  himself  to  the  rules.  By  so  doing  he  will  not 
only  add  his  moral  support  to  the  enterprise  but  he  will  be 
guided  in  his  thinking  by  the  common  reading  of  the  class. 
From  time  to  time  he  will  find  it  convenient  to  make  refer- 
ence to  their  daily  devotions,  utilizing  the  Biblical  selec- 
tions in  his  class  discussions.  Some  of  the  graded  courses 
furnish  daily  readings  of  just  this  sort  that  may  be  utilized. 
It  may  surprise  some  that  in  these  modern  days  ab- 
stinence should  be  recommended  as  a  religious  exercise  for 
boys  and  girls.  But  it  should  be  kept  in  mind  that  with  the 
tremendous  desire  for  bodily  sensations  of  all  kinds  comes 
as  a  contrast  the  desire  for  self-mastery.  Skill,  which  is 
nothing  more  than  bodily  and  mental  control,  and  "hard- 
ness" of  the  body  are  both  sought.  One  of  the  best  dis- 
ciplines, and  one  tending  to  emphasize  the  superiority  of 
the  spiritual  over  the  merely  physical,  is  found  in  self- 
imposed  abstinence.  This  is  best  brought  about  and  most 
efficacious  when  undertaken  for  a  definite  end  rather  than 
for  its  own  sake.  To  arise  early  in  order  that  one  may  find 
time  to  keep  the  class  pledge  of  daily  devotion,  to  go  with- 
out candy  or  soft  drinks  in  order  that  the  class  fund  may 
be  enlarged,  to  walk  to  school  in  order  that  the  Christmas 
offering  may  be  increased,  to  remain  away  from  the  movies 
in  order  that  goods  may  be  bought,  and  time  may  be  had 
to  sew  for  the  children  in  the  hospital,  serve  the  present- 
day  purposes  of  religious  abstinence  much  better  than  ab- 
stinence for  abstinence'  sake  of  the  Middle  Ages.  The 
results  in  self-discipline  are  the  same,  and  the  connection 
between  self-sacrifice  and  service  is  made. 


120  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

Closely  allied  to  this  are  those  processes  of  bodily  harden- 
ing undertaken  because  the  class  has  discovered  that  their 
bodies  are  their  best  tools,  more  intricate  than  any  auto- 
mobile and  more  deserving  of  care  and  attention  than  any 
machine  devised  by  man.  This  "temple  of  the  Holy  Spirit," 
this  instrument  to  be  used  to  further  God's  plans,  can  be 
made  hardy,  ready  for  any  service,  or  left  to  become  soft, 
indulged,  and  petted,  and  of  little  use  to  God  or  man.  Ab- 
stinence for  better  service  becomes  the  keynote  of  a  deeply 
religious  life  and  is  not  far  removed  from  the  practice  of 
the  training  table  and  other  athletic  interests.  This  going 
without  stimulants,  such  as  tea  and  coffee,  and,  of  course, 
narcotics,  becomes  deeply  religious.  Temperance  becomes 
not  an  incident  in  the  Sunday-school  program  but  vitally 
grips  youth  at  the  most  susceptible  point — namely,  in  his 
desire  for  supremacy  and  service. 

4.  Cultivating  devotional  spirit  in  the  class.  Thus 
far  only  the  personal  devotional  life  of  the  pupil  has  been 
considered.  The  efforts  of  the  teacher  have  been  directed 
to  building  up  the  habitual  practice  of  prayer,  Bible  read- 
ing, and  abstinence.  The  class,  as  a  social  group,  needs  also 
to  be  trained  in  their  religious  emotions.  For,  after  all, 
the  personal  lives  of  its  members  will  reflect  the  spirit  that 
animates  the  group;  and  if  the  spirit  of  worship  is  not 
here  cultivated,  it  is  doubtful  if  any  program  of  personal 
living  can  become  effective. 

The  devotional  life  of  the  class  must  be  genuine.  It  must 
not  be  a  superheated,  emotional  atmosphere  imposed  upon 
the  class  by  a  zealous  teacher.  It  must  voice  the  real  life 
of  the  class,  the  real  feelings  that  shall  eventuate  in  real 
living.  If  there  is  prayer,  it  must  voice  real  needs  of  those 
petitioning — better  if  phrased  in  the  natural  language  of 
adolescence  than  if  conventionalized  in  the  terms  of  adult 
life.  The  exuberance  of  youth  may  jar  upon  the  conven- 
tional thought  of  the  undiscerning,  but  better  the  exuber- 
ance of  youth  and  its  crudities  than  the  falsetto  note  of 
insincerity.     What  is  desired  is  not  "devotions"  added  to 


CHARACTER  THROUGH  WORSHIP  121 

the  class  teaching  but  the  whole  process  of  teaching,  dis- 
cussion, questions,  and  prayers  shot  through  with  the  de- 
votional spirit.  Perhaps  that  phrase  needs  to  be  clarified 
by  saying  that  the  "devotional  spirit"  is  no  more  and  no 
less  than  the  consciousness  of  the  presence  of  God  in  the 
life  of  the  class. 

The  class  is  small  enough  and  on  a  footing  of  such  in- 
timacy as  to  lend  itself  to  a  high  degree  of  social-religious 
endeavor.  Boys  and  girls  are  hesitant  in  declaring  their 
inner  religious  convictions  before  others,  especially  before 
those  of  the  opposite  sex.  A  little  later  the  young  people's 
society  will  furnish  adequate  opportunity  for  such  religious 
life;  but  during  the  intermediate-senior  years  the  smaller 
group  furnishes  the  social  environment  not  too  large  yet 
sufficient  for  their  needs.  If  the  worship  life  of  such  a  class 
would  be  encouraged,  a  place  must  be  found  furnishing 
some  privacy.  It  is  difficult  to  cultivate  prayer  life  in  a 
room  in  which  every  other  class  is  talking;  it  is  well-nigh 
impossible.  It  is  also  very  hard  to  create  a  spirit  of  class 
consciousness  and  confidence  that  will  permit  of  the  in- 
timacies necessary  for  the  deepening  of  the  spiritual  na- 
ture. For,  after  all,  the  devotional  life  of  the  class  as  well 
as  of  the  department  is  dependent  upon  that  intangible 
something  that  we  call  "atmosphere."  Interruptions,  a 
nervous,  irritable,  or  unsympathetic  teacher,  or  one  devoid 
of  the  sense  of  order  and  system  will  "quench  the  Spirit" 
in  the  most  hopeful  group. 

Given  an  opportunity,  what  can  the  class  do?  It  can  cul- 
tivate the  prayer  life.  Many  of  the  intermediate  lessons 
of  the  graded  series  have  prayers  appended.  These  can 
be  made  class  prayers,  joined  in  in  concert  or  led  by  one  of 
the  members.  Such  printed  prayers  tend  to  widen  the 
prayer  vocabulary  and  to  furnish  the  timid  a  starting  point 
for  later  development.  The  skilled  teacher,  however,  will 
not  depend  on  such  set  prayers  to  furnish  the  needed  ele- 
ment. Teaching  to  pray  was  one  of  the  duties  undertaken 
by  the  Master,  and  these  learners  want  to  know  how  to 


122  LEADERS    OF   YOUTH 

pray,  though  they  may  not  be  so  bold  as  were  the  disciples. 
Sentence  prayers  form  a  good  starting  point  for  training  in 
spontaneous  audible  praying,,  especially  if  these  prayers  come 
as  the  natural  result  of  discussion  or  of  need.  When  the 
class  is  alive  as  to  what  blessings  it  wants,  it  is  not  difficult 
to  find  one  who  will  voice  his  wish.  The  teacher  must  set 
the  example,  praying  simply  and  briefly,  as  he  expects  his 
pupils  to  pray. 

Whatever  happens,  the  prayer  life  of  the  class  must  not 
degenerate  into  a  formal  affair.  To  prevent  this  the  prayer 
season  may  come  at  the  beginning,  at  the  close,  or,  upon 
occasion,  in  the  midst  of  the  class  period.  The  prayers  may 
be  printed,  extemporary,  or  silent.  It  was  a  happy  moment 
in  the  life  of  the  teacher  of  high-school  boys  when  he  had 
led  them  along  the  way  of  class  prayers  to  the  point  at 
which  the  petitions  became  the  spontaneous  outburst  of 
real  needs,  couched  in  the  everyday  language  of  youth. 
The  class  was  about  to  go  for  a  camping  trip,  and  one  was 
sick.  He  was  familiarly  known  as  "Pop."  Another,  nick- 
named "Hop,"  was  addressed  by  the  teacher  as  follows: 
"  'Hop,'  you  lead  us  in  prayer  to-day.  Don't  forget  'Pop.'  " 
The  petition  was  worded  as  follows:  "Dear  Lord,  we  are 
soon  to  go  to  our  camp.  'Pop'  is  sick.  Make  him  well,  so 
he  can  go  too.  For  Jesus'  sake.  Amen."  That  was  real 
praying,  and  it  was  the  result  of  cultivation. 

Such  classes  are  the  center  of  religious  converse.  We 
hear  repeated  regret  at  the  loss  of  the  class  meeting  and 
forget  meanwhile  that  we  have  developed  as  many  class 
meetings  as  we  have  well-taught  Sunday-school  classes. 
Here,  where  the  conversation  becomes  an  objective  study 
of  religious  life,  a  most  happy  basis  is  found  for  just  that 
kind  of  personal  religious  discussion  necessary  to  youthful 
growth.  Instead  of  the  stilted,  highly  introspective  descrip- 
tions of  inner  states  boys  and  girls  are  led  to  talk  out  their 
own  problems  as  they  discuss  some  religious  character  or 
center  their  attention  upon  some  problem  of  Christian 
living.     The  teacher  has  that  close  personal  oversight  of 


CHARACTER  THROUGH  WORSHIP  123 

his  class  once  sought  by  Wesley  In  his  earlier  gatherings. 
Discussion  stimulates  not  only  thinking  hut  feeling  and 
trains  in  the  cultivation  of  right  emotions.  Sentiments 
are  heing  created  which  will  guide  the  youth  in  later  life. 

It  is  thus  that  workers  with  youth  must  set  out  to  stimu- 
late an  emotional  life  that  shall  find  satisfactions  only  in 
the  worthy,  the  noble,  and  the  good.  In  the  daily  life  of 
pupils  must  be  created  acts  that  shall  daily  stimulate  rever- 
ence for  and  love  to  God;  in  the  class  the  social  life  and 
class  discussion  must  yield  not  only  knowledge  but  must 
arouse  right  feelings  toward  the  Deity  and  toward  our  fel- 
low men.  How  the  department  as  a  whole  may  contribute 
to  the  same  end  will  be  the  next  inquiry. 

Questions 

1.  What  emotions  should  one  expect  worship  to  arouse? 

2.  How  does  each  of  the  following  develop  religious 
emotion?  Prayer,  praise,  meditation,  group  ceremonies, 
oratory,  abstinence. 

3.  Is  arousing  the  emotions  the  only  end  sought  in  wor- 
ship? 

4.  How  may  private  devotional  life  receive  stimulus  from 
the  class? 

5.  Is  the  practice  of  abstinence  desirable  in  the  young? 
Is  it  a  means  or  an  end? 

6.  How  may  the  devotional  spirit  of  the  class  be  im- 
proved? 

Observation 

Learn  from  your  fellow  workers  what  they  are  doing  to 
promote  private  devotion  among  their  pupils.  Go  over  the 
names  of  the  pupils  in  your  own  class,  attempting  to  de- 
termine who  do  and  who  do  not  practice  private  devotion. 
Make  frank  but  courteous  inquiries  of  each  pupil  in  order 
to  correct  your  estimate. 


.  CHAPTER  XII 
BUILDING  PROGRAMS  OF  WORSHIP 

Having  discovered  how  essential  is  the  training  of  the 
emotions  of  the  individual  and  of  the  class  to  true  religious 
education,  it  is  now  necessary  to  turn  to  the  department  as 
a  whole  to  see  how  its  worship  may  function  in  this  en- 
deavor. 

1.  The  value  of  departmental  worship.  Many  Sunday 
schools  maintain  the  archaic  "opening  and  closing  exer- 
cises" reminiscent  of  the  days  when  grading  was  still  un- 
thought  of.  First,  the  schools  began  to  grade  their  pupils, 
putting  them  together  hy  years  of  age  as  far  as  possible. 
Then  a  step  was  taken  toward  selecting  materials  for  study 
which  were  graded  to  meet  the  needs  of  the  various  age 
groups.  Hardly  yet  is  it  perceived  that  we  need  to  grade 
worship  quite  as  carefully  if  the  results  sought  shall  be 
realized.  But  it  has  become  growingly  obvious  that  prayers, 
songs,  and  other  devotional  acts  that  appeal  to  those  of 
mature  minds  fail  entirely  to  express  the  religious  ex- 
perience of  the  younger  element  of  the  school. 

Even  when  the  idea  of  graded  worship  has  begun  to 
take  hold,  a  serious  handicap  is  found  in  the  type  of  archi- 
tecture of  many  Sunday  schools.  The  one-room  church 
seems  positively  to  forbid  any  departmental  life,  especially 
such  forms  as  call  for  music,  concert  recitation  or  prayer, 
or  acts  disturbing  to  other  departments.  Many  village  and 
even  city  churches  are  struggling  with  this  problem,  for 
let  it  be  remembered  that  our  forefathers  built  churches 
primarily  for  preaching  purposes  only,  with  never  a  thought 
as  to  the  education  of  the  young.  Even  where  provision  is 
made,  our  schools  are  still  too  often  in  the  kindly  but  un- 
wise hands  of  those  who  can  think  of  a  school  only  in  terms 

124 


BUILDING  PROGRAMS  OF  WORSHIP  125 

of  a  group  assembled  for  singing,  prayer,  announcements, 
and  other  forms  of  mass  action.  The  superintendent  of 
such  a  school  does  not  see  how  he  functions  except  as  he 
acts  as  a  "platform  man,"  leading  the  devotions  of  the 
group. 

Great  as  are  the  obstacles,  the  day  has  arrived  when  some- 
thing different  is  needed  if  our  boys  and  girls  are  to  be 
trained  in  real  devotion,  in  genuine  worship.  If  cultivation 
in  reverence,  in  the  finer  spiritual  perceptions,  is  as  im- 
portant as  many  believe;  if  we  are  losing  something  of  the 
pristine  sense  of  the  presence  of  God  in  the  lives  of  the 
young,  as  is  frequently  implied,  then  resort  must  be  made 
at  any  cost  to  some  remedy.  We  shall  have  to  build  for 
the  young  life  of  the  church  as  generously  as  our  fathers 
built  for  the  adult  life.  We  shall  be  compelled  to  shape 
our  administrative  policy  so  as  to  give  place,  time,  and 
opportunity   for   graded   worship. 

In  the  meantime  some  of  the  obstacles  are  not  insur- 
mountable. A  superintendent  can  be  found  who  shall  apply 
himself  to  the  whole  problem  of  religious  education  and 
who  will  discover  a  place  for  himself  in  the  reorganized 
school.  Unused  parts  of  the  present  church  structure  can 
be  brought  into  play.  And  where  the  one-room  type  pre- 
vails, the  young  people  with  some  financial  help  can  furnish 
themselves  inexpensive  quarters,  not  unattractive,  on  the 
unused  portions  of  the  church  lot.  As  already  suggested, 
these  can  be  patterned  after  the  Young  Men's  Christian  As- 
sociation huts  used  in  the  national  cantonments,  con- 
structed at  a  minimum  of  cost  and  with  little  technical 
skill.  The  interior,  covered  with  beaver  board,  proves 
adequate  and  most  inviting.  During  the  warm  season  of 
the  year  all  nature  invites  to  the  out  of  doors,  where,  group  . 
separated  from  group,  each  can  carry  on  its  own  worship 
without  interfering  with  the  worship  or  study  of  other 
groups. 

2.  Cooperation  in  worship.  In  the  life  of  the  depart- 
ments under  consideration  it  is  a  first  essential  that  wor- 


126  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

ship  shall  truly  represent  the  experiences  of  the  pupils.  It 
must  not  be  something  done  for  them  but  something  par- 
ticipated in  by  them.  To  this  end  the  program  should 
originate  with  a  committee  on  worship  chosen  from  and 
by  the  department.  The  superintendent  of  the  department 
acts  as  an  ex  officio  member  of  such  as  of  all  committees. 
This  committee  should  arrange  the  programs  for  a  month 
or  more  at  a  time,  writing  it  out  in  detail,  including  hymns, 
responsive  selections,  offering,  and  story.  It  should  be 
made  responsible  for  choosing  those  who  shall  take  any 
special  part  in  the  program.  Many  of  the  suggestions  must 
come  from  the  superintendent  or  from  some  of  the  teachers 
who  are  to  act  on  the  committee,  but  it  will  be  discovered 
that  the  boys  and  girls  are  richer  in  their  suggestions  than 
one  who  has  not  utilized  their  help  may  have  thought. 

The  actual  carrying  out  of  the  program,  the  conduct  of 
the  worship  service,  may  be  placed  in  the  hands  of  the 
president  or  of  one  who  may  be  chosen  for  that  honor.  It 
may  seem  impossible  that  boys  or  girls  twelve  to  fourteen 
years  of  age  are  capable  of  presiding  at  a  service  of  worship, 
that  their  youth  and  inexperience  will  destroy  the  very 
spirit  of  reverence  that  is  sought.  But  experience  has  dis- 
covered that  these  pupils  can  be  depended  on  to  come  up 
to  their  best;  and  if  the  service  lacks  finish  it  gains  vitality. 
It  becomes  theirs  in  the  largest  sense  of  the  word.  If  the 
social  consciousness  of  the  group  has  not  yet  developed  far 
enough  to  warrant  such  procedure,  the  counselor  will  have 
to  assume  leadership  temporarily  until  he  can  develop  such 
group  consciousness.  But  the  end  of  worship  in  this  de- 
partment is  training  in  worship  and  the  creation  of  the 
devotional  life,  not  simply  a  "beautiful  service";  because 
the  members  must  be  brought  to  take  their  own  share  of 
responsibility  for  its  program  and  conduct.  In  all  this,  no 
matter  how  far  experience  has  developed,  the  superin- 
tendent and  teachers  must  be  counselors,  helping  to  shape 
ideals  and  ready  ever  to  lift  a  helping  hand. 

Where  the  intermediates  and  the  seniors  are  thrown  to- 


BUILDING  PROGRAMS  OF  WORSHIP  127 

gether,  the  problem  becomes  much  simpler;  for  here  are 
found  those  from  twelve  to  seventeen  years  of  age  from 
among  whom  certainly  can  be  selected  capable  leaders. 
The  danger  now  is  that  training  in  leadership  will  fall  en- 
tirely to  those  older,  while  the  younger  and  less  experienced 
will  be  thought  too  immature  to  be  utilized.  Constant  alert- 
ness will  be  necessary  to  discover  those  growing  capabilities 
that  can  be  put  to  the  test. 

3.  Contents  of  the  program  of  worship.  The  pro- 
gram of  worship,  conducted  either  at  the  beginning  or  at 
the  close  of  the  school  session,  consists  of  the  following 
items:  praise,  prayer.  Scripture  selection,  story.  The  ar- 
rangement must  vary  from  Sunday  to  Sunday,  but  the  items 
mentioned  occur  in  all  such  programs.  Let  us  see  what  is 
included  in  each. 

(1)  Hymns. — Praise  includes  both  vocal  and  instrumen- 
tal music.  A  piano  may  be  used  to  lead  the  singing  and  to 
furnish  the  instrumental  prelude.  Hymns  are  to  be  sought 
that  express  the  religious  hopes,  activities,  fellowship,  rever- 
ence, and  joy  of  this  group,  and  they  should  be  found  among 
the  substantial  and  abiding  treasures  of  Christian  hym- 
nology.  9oys  and  girls  with  perverted  appetites  prefer  cake 
and  pie  to  more  substantial  food,  but  their  tastes  should  be 
trained  to  wholesome  appetites.  "Jazz"  music  is  not  made 
religious  by  the  accompaniment  of  sentimental  words. 
Good  music,  well  sung,  has  been  found  to  be  more  satisfy- 
ing to  the  young  than  cheap  claptrap.  The  diflBculty  has 
been  that  the  meaning  of  good  hymns  has  not  always  been 
explained  while  the  better  music  has  been  murdered  in  the 
hands  of  inexperienced  leaders.  If  the  Junior  Department 
has  done  its  work  well,  the  pupils  will  come  to  this  depart- 
ment with  a  fair  equipment  of  good  hymns  learned  and 
understood.  This  list  should  be  enlarged  during  the  inter- 
mediate-senior years.  In  any  event,  to  appreciate  the 
hymns  time  will  be  necessary  to  create  interest  by  telling 
the  story  of  some  of  them  and  in  reading  together  and 
interpreting  others.     Selecting  each  month  a  good  depart- 


128  LEADERS    OF   YOUTH 

ment  hymn  serves  to  hold  that  one  in  mind  long  enough  to 
have  it  fasten  itself  upon  the  memory  and  work  into  the 
emotions. 

A  list  of  hymns  suitable  to  these  pupils  follows,  all  of 
which  may  be  found  in  The  Methodist  Hymnal  or  in  The 
Methodist  Simday  School  Hymnal.  The  list  does  not  pre- 
tend to  be  complete  but  merely  suggestive  of  types  and 
qualities  desired:  "All  Hail  the  Power  of  Jesus'  Name"  (both 
tunes);  "Jesus  Calls  Us";  "O  Master,  Let  Me  Walk  With 
Thee";  "It  Came  Upon  the  Midnight  Clear";  "Holy  Night"; 
"While  Shepherds  Watched  Their  Flocks";  "O  Little  Town 
of  Bethlehem";  "There's  a  Song  in  the  Air";  "Fairest  Lord 
Jesus";  "0  God,  Our  Help  in  Ages  Past";  "Teach  Me,  My 
God  and  King";  "0  Worship  the  King";  "A  Mighty  Fortress 
is  Our  God";  "O  Zion,  Haste";  "Hark,  the  Voice  of  Jesus 
Calling";  "Faith  of  Our  Fathers";  "Tell  It  Out  Among  the 
Nations";  "O  Jesus,  Thou  Art  Standing";  "We  March,  We 
March,  to  Victory";  "Christ  the  Lord  Is  Risen  To-day"; 
"How  Firm  a  Foundation";  "O  Jesus  I  Have  Promised"; 
"Holy,  Holy,  Holy";  "Love  Divine,  All  Loves  Excelling"; 
"Lord,  Speak  to  Me";  "Jesus,  the  Very  Thought  of  Thee"; 
"Who  Is  Thy  Neighbor?  He  Whom  Thou"  (tune  "Saint 
Agnes");  "Come,  Ye  Thankful";  "There's  a  Wideness  in 
God's  Mercy";   "The  Spacious  Firmament  on  High." 

(2)  Prayer. — All  that  has  been  said  concerning  encourag- 
ing prayer  in  the  class  session  becomes  an  argument  against 
prayer  in  the  department  sessions.  Self-consciousness  is 
too  great,  and  the  temptation  to  priggishness  too  severe 
to  put  this  strain  on  the  young.  In  consequence,  much  at- 
tention should  be  paid  to  cultivating  the  prayer  life  through 
the  use  of  printed  and  memorized  prayers.  Such  prayers 
may  be  found  in  books  of  prayers,^  by  selecting  appropriate 
quotations  from  the  Psalms,  or  they  may  be  composed  by 
members  of  the  department  or  by  the  teachers.  Such  prac- 
tice in  prayer  writing  is  most  beneficial  and  results  in  mak- 


'  Book  of  Common  Prayer;  Book  of  Prayer  (Philadelphia);  Manual  for  Train- 
ing in  Worship,  Hartshorue. 


BUILDING  PROGRAMS  OF  WORSHIP  129 

ing  the  prayers  themselves  seem  more  the  product  of  the 
mind  of  the  group. 

Extemporary  prayers,  where  used, — and  they  should  be 
used  at  nearly  every  session — should  be  offered  by  the  adult 
members  of  the  department,  voiced  in  simple,  dignified  lan- 
guage but  presenting  the  real  needs  and  feelings  of  the 
boys  and  girls.  Too  much  study  on  the  prayer  life  of  these 
sessions  cannot  be  given. 

(3)  Scripture  selections. — The  committee  should  be  en- 
couraged to  find  and  choose  the  responsive  Scripture  se- 
lections. The  Psalms,  the  Beatitudes,  the  Ten  Command- 
ments, Paul's  psalm  of  love  (1  Cor.  13),  and  other  similar 
selections  are  suggestive  of  the  sort  of  material  desired.^ 

The  story  may  be  nonbibli-cal,  a  Biblical  tale  retold,  or  a 
current  anecdote  used  for  its  value  to  inspire  right  thinking 
and  emotional  appeal.  It  should  include  from  time  to  time 
missionary.  Christian  autobiographical,  hymnological,  and 
heart-interest  themes.  The  range  should  be  wide  and 
varied.  Where  possible  definite  outlet  for  the  emotional 
interests  should  be  established.  For  instance,  if  the  story 
has  been  about  the  hospital  ward  for  children,  some  con- 
crete service  should  be  suggested  and  followed  out  by  the 
department.  Where  missionary  tales  are  involved,  some 
missionary  service  should  be  devised.  Where  personal  atti- 
tudes are  to  be  established,  opportunity  for  public  decisioa 
may  be  given.  It  is  poor  practice  to  arouse  an  emotion  and! 
then  let  it  languish  with  no  objective,  muscular  satis- 
faction. 

(4)  Order  of  tcorship. — Dr.  Hugh  Hartshorne  suggests 
that  all  worship  in  the  departments  should  be  grouped 
around  certain  ideas,  regard  being  had  for  the  seasonal  in- 
terests of  the  pupils.  His  outline  of  themes  includes  the 
following  items:  gratitude,  good  will,  reverence,  faith,  and 
loyalty.  This  list  is  fairly  comprehensive,  furnishing  a 
group  of  subjects  that  can  be  worked  out  in  detail  according 

*  Used  by  permission.  From  Manual  for  Training  in  Worship,  by  Hugh 
Hartshorne.     Copyright,  1915,  by  Charles  Scribner's  Sons,  ; 


130  LEADERS    OF   YOUTH 

to  the  judgment  of  the  leader.  Gratitude  centers  itself 
around  the  Thanksgiving  season;  good  will  finds  its  interest 
in  Christmas;  reverence  furnishes  the  emotions  a  response 
to  the  good  will  of  God  toward  us;  faith  rounds  itself  out 
in  the  Easter  message,  while  loyalty  discovers  its  nearer 
incentive  in  the  national  spirit  of  patriotism  and,  in  its 
wider  reaches,  in  loyalty  to  all  mankind.  Other  themes 
may  suggest  themselves  to  the  worker,  such  as  courage, 
service,   and   thoughtfulness   or  knowledge. 

The  following  typifies  an  order  of  service  that  may  be 
used  on  any  occasion: 

Hymn  (processionally  sung  if  desired,  and  if  a  choir  is 
part  of  the  activities  of  the  department). 

Psalm,  unison  or  responsive,  the  department  standing. 

The  Lord's  Prayer  or  David's  prayer,  or  the  department 
prayer. 

Hymn. 

Story. 

Leader's  Prayer. 

Hymn    (recessionally   sung   where  possible). 

This  order  suggests  that  a  choir  is  a  valued  addition  to 
the  department,  such  a  choir  being  determined  by  the  size 
of  the  department  and  the  possession  of  a  music  leader  to 
train  it.  While  exceedingly  desirable,  the  choir  is  not  es- 
sential to  worship  at  this  age. 

The  order  of  worship  also  suggests  that  certain  prayers 
should  be  the  possession  of  all  members  of  the  department 
as  was  indicated  above.  David's  prayer,  so  called,  is  as 
follows: 

Create  in  me  a  right  heart,  O  God,  and  take  not  thy  holy 
spirit  from  me.  Let  the  words  of  my  mouth  and  the  medita- 
tions of  my  heart  be  acceptable  in  thy  sight,  O  Lord,  my 
strength  and  my  Redeemer.     Amen. 

A    suggestive    departmental    prayer    is    found    in    these 

words: 

Our  Father  in  heaven,  and  living  in  men's  lives  to-day, 
we  thank  thee  for  the  good  gifts  that  are  ours,  for  health 
and  strength,  for  friends  and  home,  for  our  land  and  the 


BUILDING  PROGRAMS  OF  WORSHIP  131 

knowledge  and  love  that  we  have  of  thee.  Day  by  day  and 
week  by  week  those  gifts  remind  us  of  our  obligation  to 
share  them  with  others  and  to  make  this  world  more  as 
thou  wouldst  have  it  be.  Grant  that  we  may  be  true  to 
thee  in  thought,  in  word,  and  in  act.  Help  us  to  understand 
that  all  that  we  can  do  for  thee  must  be  done  through  our 
fellow  meii.  Help  us  to  know  thee  better,  that  we  may 
become  as  strong  and  as  courageous  as  thou  wouldst  have 
us,  and  that  we  may  more  perfectly  bring  thy  spirit  and  thy 
power  into  this  world.     Amen. 

Instrumental  music  is  helpful  in  the  devotional  service 
if  the  pupils  are  made  aware  of  the  significance  of  the 
music,  and  if  the  pianist  is  skilled  enough  to  make  the 
music  minister  to  the  emotional  life.  Of  course,  the  pipe 
organ  is  much  more  satisfying  than  the  piano  for  devo- 
tional life;  and  in  many  of  our  schools  the  auditorium  of 
the  church  is  available  for  the  worship  service  of  this  de- 
partment. Selections  suggested  by  Professor  Hartshorne 
are  as  follows: 

"Chorus   of   the   Pilgrims" Wagner 

"Hallelujah  Chorus"  from  "The  Messiah".  .Handel 

"Hero's  March" Mendelssohn 

"Intermezzo"  from  "Cavalleria  Rusticana" 

Mascagni 

"Largo" Handel 

"Largo"  from  "The  New  World  Symphony" 

Dvorak 

"March   and   Chorus" Wagner 

"March  of  the  Magi  Kings" Dubois 

"Minuet"  from  "The  Gothic  Suite" Boelmann 

"March   Militaire" Schubert 

"Pastoral  Symphony"  from  "The  Messiah".  .Handel 

"Priests'  March"  from  "Athalie" Mendelssohn 

"Traumerei  and  Romance" Schumann 

"Walter's  Prize  Song"  from  "Die  Meistersinger" 

Wagner 

It  need  hardly  be  said  that  every  service  should  have  a 
unity  running  through  it.  Hymns,  prayers,  instrumental 
music,  and  story  should  link  up  together  so  closely  that  the 
result  will  be  the  production  of  strong  emotions  not  of 
varied  and   conflicting  types  but  of  a  single  sort.     Love, 


132  LEADERS    OP   YOUTH 

service,  good  will,  faith, — these  or  other  attitudes  are  being 
established  and  can  only  become  powerful  contributors  to 
conduct  in  so  far  as  the  entire  service  drives  to  a  single 
end.  We  shall  pass  now  to  the  story  itself  and  the  part  it 
plays  in  developing  the  emotions. 

Questions 

1.  Give   reasons   for  maintaining  departmental   worship. 

2.  How  may  the  lack  of  physical  accommodations  neces- 
sary to  departmental  worship  be  overcome? 

3.  Who  should  conduct  the  worship  service  of  the  de- 
partment? 

4.  Of  what  four  parts  should  the  program  of  worship 
consist? 

5.  Name  some  of  the  best  hymns  for  use  with  your  pupils. 

6.  Should  one  expect  pupils  to  offer  extempore  prayer  in 
departmental   worship? 

7.  Of  what  may  the  "story"  consist? 

Observation 

If  your  Sunday  school  has  a  general  period  of  worship, 
note  (1)  if  the  songs  meet  the  needs  of  teen-age  boys  and 
girls;  (2)  if  the  prayer  is  such  as  to  awaken  reverence  and 
interest;  (3)  if  the  superintendent's  talk  develops  real 
thinking. 

If  you  have  departmental  worship  make  similar  obser- 
vations. 


CHAPTER    XIII 

STORY-TELLING 

While  it  is  customary  to  think  of  story-telling  as  an 
accomplishment  especially  desirable  for  the  teacher  of  chil- 
dren up  to  the  junior  age,  it  is  novel  to  suggest  that  leaders 
of  youth  need  to  cultivate  the  art  with  equal  diligence.  Yet 
is  it  not  true  that  at  any  age  a  story  well  told  captures  the 
imagination  and  arouses  the  emotions  as  does  nothing  else? 
To  be  sure,  the  type  of  story  differs,  but  the  age-long  charm 
of  the  story-teller  has  not  been  broken,  not  even  by  the 
melodramatic  screen,  as  is  witnessed  by  the  success  of 
Scoutmasters,  Camp  Fire  Guardians,  and  recreational 
leaders  in  many  widely  separated  centers.  Writes  Mrs. 
Eggleston:' 

Telling  stories  to  the  Young  People's  Division  of  the 
church  school  in  class,  in  club,  in  Camp  Fire  and  Scouts  is 
a  great  challenge.  To  me  it  is  one  of  the  greatest  needs  in 
the  church  life  to-day,  for  our  churches  are  losing  their 
young  people  in  a  startling  way.  Why?  Because  they  have 
not  been  able  to  implant  ideals  that  will  tide  them  over  the 
middle-adolescent  years;  because  they  have  not  made  them 
see  the  vision  of  the  service;  because  they  have  not  put 
them  at  work.  And  what  is  the  greatest  power  known  in 
religious  work  for  the  implanting  of  ideals?  A  story. 
It  is  not  that  the  young  people  do  not  love  stories  as  well  as 
they  ever  did.  They  will  tease  for  a  story  much  more  than 
the  little  ones  will  if  they  know  you  have  stories  to  tell 
them.  The  fault  is  with  the  teachers.  We  need  teachers 
who  will  specialize  so  that  they  can  get  for  themselves  a 
fund  of  these  great  stories  and  use  them  year  after  year. 
We  need  teachers  who  will  learn  to  tell  stories  so  that  they 
can  fill  the  need.  Be  honest  with  yourself  and  search  to 
see  how  many  great  stories  you  know  for  this  age.  Sup- 
pose someone  asked  you  to  go  to  Camp  Devens  and  tell  a 
group  of  stories  to  high-school  boys  who  are  there  in  the 

1  The  Use  of  the  Story  in  Religious  Education,  pages  80,  81. 

133 


134  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

Officers'  Reserve  Training  School.  Wliat  story  would  you 
choose  when  every  boy  is  a  stranger  to  you?  I  studied  long 
before  I  knew  what  to  use  there,  for  think  of  the  possi- 
bilities of  the  stories  you  might  tell!  I  built  my  group 
around  "The  Road  of  the  Loving  Heart"  and  I  shall  never 
forget  the  faces  of  the  group  before  me.  As  we  were  leaving 
the  hut,  a  little  fellow  came  to  thank  me  and  lingered 
behind  the  rest.  "Thanks  for  coming,"  he  said.  "I  wish 
I  could  hear  stories  like  that  often.  We  boys  need  them." 
The  greatest  praise  you  will  ever  get  is  to  have  a  teen-age 
boy  or  a  girl  say,  "You  have  helped  me." 

1.  Story  interests  of  adolescents.  Story  and  reading 
interests  of  this  group  are  not  far  apart.  A  careful  reading 
of  the  chapter  "The  Lure  of  Books"  will  guide  one  in  the 
selection  of  good  stories.  In  particular,  however,  one  can 
indicate  what  sorts  of  stories  make  special  appeal  during 
these  years.  Let  it  be  noted  that  the  story  demands  swift 
movement,  elision  of  the  superfluous,  and  suspense  to  a 
degree  quite  beyond  the  printed  page.  The  book  that  is  to 
be  laid  aside  to  be  picked  up  and  continued  later  may 
move  more  slowly,  may  pass  from  one  scene  of  suspense  to 
another,  with  pause  for  breath  between,  and  may  be  graced 
by  the  addition  of  description  and  narrative.  On  the  other 
hand,  the  told  story  moves  swiftly  to  its  climax.  As  the 
great  painting  may  be  embellished  by  abundance  of  detail, 
so  a  novel  may  add  all  the  minutiae  to  obtain  the  desired 
effect.  The  story  that  is  to  be  told  is  a  miniature,  small 
but  perfect. 

The  early  adolescent  enjoys  "stories  of  chivalry,  stories 
of  self-sacrifice,  romance,  and  heroism."  Not  the  deeds  of 
the  hero  make  the  chief  appeal,  but  the  motives  that  play 
so  large  a  part  in  heroic  conduct.  The  story  that  portrays 
the  actions  of  the  hero  so  that  one  may  see  clearly  what 
compelling  motivation  is  at  work,  which  arouses  the  emo- 
tional responses  of  liking  the  hero  and  wanting  to  be  like 
him  in  inner  rather  than  in  outer  conduct,  is  the  one 
sought.  Moreover,  such  stories  must  paint  human  conduct 
in   such   large   lines   that   motivation   cannot  be   mistaken. 


STORY-TELLING  135 

That  is  why  the  epics,  the  King  Arthur  tales,  and  similar 
stories  are  so  desirable.  They  carry  one  back  to  a  fashion 
of  life  so  simplified  as  to  leave  no  doubt  as  to  the  purposes 
animating  the  hero  or  heroine. 

When  the  high-school  age  is  reached,  "the  social  appeal" 
becomes  very  strong.  One  wants  to  know,  not  about  the 
heroes  of  the  past,  in  a  day  of  different  living,  but  the 
world  of  persons  and  things  in  their  social  relations.  "Love 
begins  to  be  an  influence,  and  new  ideals  have  to  be  formed. 
Stories  of  romantic  love  and  of  altruistic  service  have  to 
be  given."  These  stories  are  to  be  found  in  the  longer  tales 
of  heroic  endeavor,  in  missionary  literature,  in  fiction,  and 
in  the  current  papers  and  magazines,  so  full  of  incidents  of 
self-sacrifice,  of  altruistic  love,  and  of  service.  Biography 
furnishes  a  full  quota  of  desired  tales. 

In  these  later  years,  as  youth  begins  to  think  in  terms  of 
values,  it  is  desirable  to  find  such  stories  as  shall  portray 
the  inner  meaning  of  things.  Heroic  service  tales,  bio- 
graphy, and  history  all  tend  to  this  end.  Says  Mrs.  Eg- 
gleston:^ 

I  well  remember  telling  "The  Lost  Word,"  by  Van  Dyke, 
to  a  crowd  of  boys  about  twenty.  It  is  a  wonderful  story 
of  the  value  of  the  word  "Christ."  The  boys  listened  so  well 
and  sat  for  nearly  an  hour  after  the  class,  discussing  the 
truth  of  the  thought.  Later  one  of  the  boys  said  to  me,  "I 
think  that  story  must  have  been  written  for  me,  for  I  have 
been  so  unhappy  over  the  fact  that  I  was  losing  my  grip 
on  the  deeper  side  of  life.     I  see  now  and  I  am  so  glad." 

2.  Hoiv  to  tell  stories  to  adolescents.  Telling  stories 
to  adolescents  involves  the  use  of  the  same  principles  as 
does  all  other  story-telling.  It  requires  that  one  get  into 
the  spirit  of  the  story — that  is,  really  believe  the  story  for 
himself  and  see  what  the  mainspring  of  the  story  is.  It 
requires,  further,  the  complete  mastery  of  the  story 
until  the  tale  becomes  the  vehicle  through  which 
one  most  easily  expresses  the  truth.     This  requires  careful 


^0-p.  cit.,  page  80. 


136  LEADERS    OF   YOUTH 

preparation  of  both  plot  and  wording,  so  that  the  story  shall 
move  smoothly  on  to  its  climax.  The  mind  of  the  story- 
teller must  not  be  diverted  by  the  effort  to  recall  the  tale 
nor  by  the  effort  of  choosing  his  vocabulary.  The  story 
must  be  seen  so  that  it  shall  become  vivid  to  the  teller.  He 
can  only  picture  with  Avords  what  he  has  himself  seen  and 
felt.  There  is  a  climax  to  every  story,  and  this  must 
become  central  in  the  building  up  of  the  tale.  Toward  this 
climax  everything  must  tend,  and  from  it  the  conclusion 
must  naturally  bring  the  listeners  back  to  the  plane  of 
everyday  experience.  To  attain  these  results  the  story 
should  be  analyzed,  at  first  written  out  to  make  certain  the 
picture  and  the  wording.  It  then  should  be  tried  out,  at 
first  alone  and  then  upon  a  small  group.  Practice  makes 
perfect  here  as  elsewhere. 

At  one  point,  however,  the  story-teller  for  adolescents 
needs  to  remember,  as  the  teller  of  tales  to  little  children 
does  not,  that  the  personal  equation  enters  into  story- 
telling. One  who  would  teach  moral  and  religious  values 
through  the  story  must,  if  his  listeners  are  adolescents, 
live  the  truth  unfolded.  And,  moreover,  he  himself  must 
be  in  such  class  comradeship  that  the  tale  not  only  leaves 
Its  impress  but  the  added  impress  of  his  own  sincerity  and 
fellowship.  Space  does  not  permit  the  exhaustive  study  of 
these  matters;  hence,  the  reader  who  desires  to  perfect 
himself  in  the  art  of  story-telling  is  referred  to  the  follow- 
ing books  for  further  aid:  The  Use  of  the  Story  in  Religious 
Education,  Eggleston;  Stories  and  Story-Telling,  St.  John; 
How  to  Tell  Stories  to  Children,  Bryant;  Some  Great 
Stories  and  How  to  Tell  Them,  Wyche;  The  Art  of  the 
Story-Teller,  Shedlock;  Education  by  Story-Telling,  Gather. 

3.  Uses  of  the  story  in  these  departments.  The  story 
has  a  threefold  use  in  the  Intermediate-Senior  Department: 
first,  in  the  worship  program,  as  already  indicated;  sec- 
ondly, in  class  instruction;  thirdly,  in  the  social  life  of  the 
group. 

In  his  Manual  for  Training  in  Worshij)  Professor  Hugh 


STORY-TELLING  137 

Hartshorne  devotes  more  than  ninety  out  of  one  hundred 
and  fifty-four  pages  to  stories.  These  are  grouped  around 
five  central  themes:  gratitude,  good  will,  faith,  reverence, 
and  loyalty.  These  stories — and  they  are  included  as  types 
only  with  no  pretence  of  exhaustiveness — form  the  nucleus 
about  which  the  service  is  built  up.  The  Moral  Education 
League  of  England  set  out  some  years  ago  to  teach  morals 
through  the  story.  Dr.  Gould,  its  secretary,  has  gathered 
together  the  following  books  of  moral  stories:  Children's 
Book  of  Moral  Lessons  (four  volumes) ;  Brave  Citizens; 
Sto7-ies  for  Moral  Instruction. 

What  these  men  have  found  out  is  only  the  beginning  of 
the  large  resources  of  the  story  for  conveying  right  ideals 
and  of  inspiring  right  emotions.  To  make  use  of  these 
stories,  however,  the  leader  of  the  teen-age  group  needs  to 
know  how  to  tell  stories  and  whence  to  select  his  materials. 
The  following  list  will  be  found  of  aid  to  the  adolescent 
story-teller:  Manual  for  Training  in  Worshij),  Hartshorne. 
(Stories  for  groups  through  the  eighth  grade.  Some  of 
these  are  good  for  the  older  years  but  they  will  have  to  be 
selected.)  Education  by  Story-Telling,  Gather.  (Stories  by 
grades  through  the  eighth,  listed  by  months.  These,  also, 
will  have  to  be  selected  carefully.)  The  Use  of  the  Story 
in  Religious  Education,  Eggleston.  From  the  last  are  se- 
lected "Some  Adolescent  Stories": 

"In  the  Land  of  the  Blue  Flower,"  Burnett. 

"Ruth"  and  "Esther"  (the  Bible). 

"Evangeline,"  Longfellow. 

"The  Three  Weavers"  (from  The  Little  Colonel  at  Board- 
ing School,  Johnston). 

"The  Road  of  the  Loving  Heart"  (from  The  Little 
Colonel's  House  Party). 

"Mahala  Joe"  (from  The  Basket  Woman,  Austin). 

Stories  from  The  Blue  Flower  and  The  Ruling  Passion, 
Van  Dyke. 

"How  Much  Land  a  Man  Needs,"  Tolstoy. 

"The  Two  Pilgrims"  (from  In  Pursuit  of  Happiness,  Tol- 
stoy). 

"The  Heart  of  the  Rose,"  McKee. 


138  LEADERS    OF   YOUTH 

"The  Selfish  Giant"  and  "The  Birthday  of  the  Infanta," 
Wilde. 

"The  King's  Jewel"   (from  The  XJnTcnown  Quantity). 

"Story-Tell  Lib,"  Slosson. 

"The  Toiling  of  Felix,"  Van  Dyke. 

"Red  Thread  of  Courage"  (from  How  to  Tell  Stories  to 
Children,  Bryant). 

"The  Perfect  Tribute,"  Andrews. 

"Love  Stories  of  Great  Missionaries,"  Brain. 

"Tales  of  Missionary  Heroism." 

Book  of  Golden  Deeds,  Yonge. 

"In  the  Desert  of  Waiting"  (from  The  Little  Colonel  in 
Arizona,  Johnston). 

"The  Hero  of  the  Alley,"  Gulliver  (from  Everyland, 
June,   1912). 

"The  Christ  of  the  Andes"  (American  Peace  Society). 

"The  Closing  Door,"  Bryant. 

"The  Faithful  Follower,"  Stewart. 

Parables  From  Nature,  Gatty. 

"Joan  of  Arc." 

"Sir  Galahad  and  Arthur." 

"David  and  Jonathan"  (from  The  Throyie  of  David,  In- 
graham). 

Keeping  Tryst,  Johnston. 

"Bunga,"  Ferris  (from  Everyland,  1918). 

"The   Great   Stone   Face,"   Hawthorne. 

"Golden  Windows,"  Richards. 

"The  Silver  Crown,"  Richards. 

"The  First  Christmas  Tree,"  Wallace. 

"Historic  Boyhoods"  and  "Historic  Girlhoods,"  Holland. 

Says  Hartshorne: 

There  is  a  large  amount  of  story  material  which  is  not 
at  present  in  usable  form  but  is  adapted  in  content  and 
can  readily  be  put  in  shape  by  those  who  have  the  time  to 
spend  upon  it.  In  books  by  Oppenheim,  Harold  Begbie, 
Paul  Leicester  Ford,  in  Queed,  and  Y.  V.'s  Eyes,  and 
others  of  like  character  there  are  incidents  of  Christian 
deeds  in  different  situations.  Many  stories  can  be  culled 
from  missionary  biography  and  the  stories  of  the  bravery 
and  the  loyalty  of  foreign  Christians.  Examples  of  what 
certain  foreigners  have  done — Steiner,  Riis,  Mary  Antin — 
are  helpful.  (Inquire  at  libraries  for  materials  for  or  by 
these  persons.)  Those  in  less  fortunate  circumstance  need 
to  have  their  imagination  stimulated  and  fed  with  .  .  . 
talks  and  appreciation  of  nature,  stories  about  other  chil- 


STORY-TELLING     •  139 

dren,  other  peoples,  other  lands  and  places.  Sympathy  for 
others  without  distinction  of  class  or  privilege  can  be  culti- 
vated through  stories  of  how  others  live,  their  difficulties, 
misfortunes,  pleasures,  and  heroisms.  Cases  of  child  labor, 
accounts  of  hospital  work,  fresh-air  work,  milk  stations, 
private-school  life  (see  Owen  Johnson's  books),  the  trials 
of  the  "poor  little  rich  children,"  are  rich  possibilities. 
Farm  life,  city  life,  suburban  life,  village  life,  camp  life, 
sea  life,  firemen,  miners,  life  savers, — all  common  everyday 
things — can  be  illuminated  and  transfigured  by  a  glow  of 
imagination  and  made  over  into  the  means  of  deepening  the 
sympathies  and  appreciations  of  children.^ 

The  second  place  in  which  the  art  of  story-telling  is  of 
value  is  in  the  class  hour.  To  be  sure,  the  major  part  of 
instruction  for  this  age  is  through  discussion.  But  variety 
is  essential  here  as  elsewhere,  and  the  teacher  who  knows 
how  to  introduce  the  lesson  or  how  to  pick  it  up  and  illus- 
trate it  at  some  vital  point  by  means  of  the  story  is  always 
at  an  advantage.  Not  infrequently  the  well-told  story,  the 
portrayal  of  the  character  under  discussion,  will  be  the 
means  of  stimulating  interest  and  of  interpreting  the  mo- 
tives involved  as  will  nothing  else.  Not  only  will  such  a 
teacher  be  able  to  interest  his  class  directly,  but  he  will 
also  be  able  to  set  before  his  pupils  the  example  that  shall 
enable  them  to  become  story-tellers  too.  From  time  to  time 
they  will  be  given  opportunity  to  tell  the  story  of  the  lesson 
either  in  their  own  class  or  in  the  class  of  some  younger 
group,  thereby  enriching  their  own  lives  by  the  cultivation 
of  a  new  talent. 

Last  of  all,  the  story  enters  into  the  recreational  life  of 
the  department.  On  the  hike,  in  camp,  at  the  social  even- 
ing, or  around  the  blazing  fire  stories  form  no  insignificant 
contribution  to  the  enjoyment  of  the  group.  It  is  then 
that  the  wise  teacher  will  long  for  just  a  story  full  of  fun, 
of  wit,  or  of  caricature,  of  serious  purpose  concealed  under 
the  enjoyment  of  the  tale,  with  which  to   delight  and  to 


lUsed  by  permission.     From  Hymnal  for  Training  in   Worship,  by  Hugh 
Hartshorne.     Copyright,  1915,  by  Charles  Scribner's  Sons. 


140  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

instruct.  Fortunate  the  leader  thus  possessed  of  a  stock 
of  well-chosen  stories  and  of  the  art  that  shall  make  them 
live  in  the  imaginations  of  his  listeners. 

Begin'at  once  to  practice  the  art,  using  the  stories  already 
suggested  and  adding  to  them,  from  time  to  time,  out  of 
your  own  experience.  Story-telling  will  prove  one  of  your 
most  valued  accomplishments. 

Questions 

1.  In  what  three  ways  can  the  intermediate-senior  worker 
make  use  of  the  story? 

2.  Name  the  types  of  story  most  enjoyed  by  the  interme- 
diate;  by  the  senior. 

3.  What  are  some  of  the  essentials  in  acquiring  the  art 
of  story-telling. 

4.  Name  two  or  three  well  known  stories  for  the  ages 
under  consideration. 

5.  Where  may  one  secure  a  list  of  good  stories? 

Observatiox 

If  possible  get  someone  who  has  acquired  the  art  to  tell 
a  story  to  the  department.  Note  the  choice  of  story,  points 
of  interest,  method  of  unfolding,  climax,  and  conclusion.  If 
impossible  to  get  a  story-teller,  try,  after  careful  prepara- 
tion, telling  a  story  yourself.  This  may  be  done  in  the  class 
if  the  department  does  not  afford  the  opportunity. 


CHAPTER  XIV 
CHARACTER  THROUGH  RECREATION 

"Come,  let  us  play  with  our  children"  is  Froebel's  well- 
known  invitation.  Ever  since  Froebel's  time  we  have  been 
discovering  not  only  that  education  may  be  wrought  out 
through  play  life,  but  that  character,  for  good  or  for 
evil,  is  being  wrought  out  in  the  play  of  youth.  Mission- 
aries in  Brazil  have  repeatedly  found  football  and  baseball 
"means  of  grace"  in  a  land  where  organized  play  among 
boys  is  unknown.  We  shall  have  to  turn  our  attention, 
then,  to  that  large  part  of  the  pupil's  lives  which  concerns 
itself  with  their  recreations. 

1.  Fun  am  end  of  recreation.  The  end  of  all  recrea- 
tion in  the  mind  of  young  people  is  fun — just  fun.  That 
is  why  it  is  so  difficult  for  adults  to  comprehend  this  phase 
of  adolescent  life.  It  is  so  hard  to  see  w^hat  purpose  there 
is  in  roaming  aimlessly  through  the  woods,  in  gathering 
in  a  crowd  to  push  and  jostle  each  other,  to  throw  each 
other  down,  to  crawl  through  a  window  to  explore  an 
unused  building,  to  sit  beside  a  camp  fire  with  no  apparent 
end  other  than  to  sit  there  and  watch  the  blaze,  or  to  go 
strolling  girl  with  girl  friend  and  talk,  and  talk,  and  talk. 
Games  and  sports  seem  a  little  more  tangible  to  the  adult 
comprehension,  but  the  giggles  of  a  group  of  teen-age  boys 
and  girls  at  a  "party"  are  quite  beyond  one.  Wherein 
lies  the  fun  of  breaking  electric-light  globes,  of  stoning 
out  the  windows  of  an  empty  and  secluded  building,  of 
cutting  initials  in  every  conceivable  and  inconceivable  place, 
of  stoning  the  members  of  another  gang  or  the  "dagoes" 
from  "our  hill"?  There  may  be  imagined  surprise  and  the 
pleasure  of  nervous  shock  in  the  first  or  second  giant  fire- 
cracker; but  what  fun  exists  at  the  twenty-seventh  explo- 

141 


142  LEADERS    OF   YOUTH 

sion  directly  under  my  window  or  in  the  "tick-tack"  on  my 
liouse? 

The  leader  must  get  the  pupil's  viewpoint.  He  must 
see  that  only  a  small  portion  of  each  day  is  his  to  use  as  he 
pleases;  that  noise  may  be  a  means  of  self-expression  for 
the  boy  quite  as  truly  as  making  money  or  singing  at  a 
concert  or  serving  an  afternoon  tea  in  the  home  is  for  the 
adult.  He  further  will  have  to  discover  that  in  youth  the 
senses  are  tingling  for  satisfactions,  for  excitation;  and 
that  a  noise  or  an  odor,  glaring  lights  and  bizarre  colors, 
are  welcome  stimulants,  as  welcome  as  the  cessation  of 
stimulations  becomes  to  the  overstimulated  nerve  ends  of 
adults.  He  must  understand  the  tremendous  pull  of  the 
social  consciousness  that  wants  "somebody  around  if  it  is 
only  the  cat."  Nature  abhors  a  vacuum  and  Nature  is 
never  more  insistent  in  her  demands  than  just  now.  One 
must  understand  that  humor  has  its  evolution  quite  as 
truly  as  does  reasoning.  It  is  "terribly"  funny  to  see 
grown-ups  get  fussy  over  the  "tick-tack,"  to  see  them  jump 
at  the  unexpected  explosion,  and  to  shock  them  with  one's 
conduct.  We  may  not  agree  that  the  adolescent  viewpoint 
is  the  best  or  the  one  to  be  adopted  for  life;  but  we  must 
see  how  it  controls  conduct  at  that  precise  age,  and  that  our 
task  is  to  build  upon  what  is  there. 

2.  Recreational  life  to-day.  Further,  the  leader  of 
intermediates  or  seniors  will  find  that  the  recreational  life 
of  the  young  is  too  important  to  be  left  alone.  It  is  a  part 
of  life  which,  left  to  itself,  may  degenerate  into  positive 
immorality.  Leisure  time  gives  idle  hands  over  to  the  devil. 
A  study  of  how  pupils  of  the  upper  grades  and  of  high 
school  spend  their  leisure  will  cause  any  thoughtful  adult 
to  wonder  that  so  few  young  people  go  wrong. 

What  are  the  present  facts  regarding  the  play  habits  of 
boys  and  girls  in  their  teens?  In  the  last  few  years  several 
communities  have  published  statistics  of  their  own  recrea- 
tional life.  To  read  a  dozen  of  these  gives  us  a  startlingly 
vivid  picture  of  boy  and  girl  life  in  America,  whether  in 


CHARACTER  THROUGH  RECREATION     143 

great  cities  or  smaller  industrial  centers,  university  town  or 
country  village,  on  the  coast  or  inland,  North,  South,  West, 
or  East;  and  it  is  true  that: 

Less  than  half  of  the  grade-school  girls  mention  outdoor 
sports.  (The  boys  mention  more  but  altogether  too  few- 
games.)  There  is  little  organization  or  effort  in  the  active 
plays  they  do  report.  They  consist  of  running,  chasing, 
"fooling,"  while  some  speak  of  hopscotch,  coasting,  and 
skating  in  winter.  The  most  striking  thing  about  the  girls 
is  the  large  amount  of  time  occupied  by  calling  and  talking 
with  their  girl  friends.  The  average  age  of  these  girls  is 
thirteen  and  fourteen.  The  boys  of  the  same  age  spend 
much  time  "around  the  railroad  yards,  coal  docks,  and  the 
like."  They  like  to  "hop  trains,"  to  run  on  the  cars,  to 
shoot  craps,  and  to  "swipe"  goods. 

From  careful  observation  of  33,122  children  in  fourteen 
different  cities,  varying  in  population  from  22,000  to  500,000, 
the  average  of  all  boys  and  girls  (observed  during  the  after- 
school  leisure  time)  gave  43  per  cent  doing  nothing;  and 
of  the  additional  33  per  cent  tabulated  as  walking,  the 
majority  of  the  girls  were  really  idling.  In  a  rural  com- 
munity of  6,000  "especially  significant  is  the  fact  that  168 
of  the  262  idling  boys  and  girls  were  idling  in  groups. 
Here  is  where  mischief  starts."' 

As  Jane  Addams  has  so  well  put  it: 

Never  before  in  civilization  have  such  numbers  of  young 
girls  been  suddenly  released  from  the  protection  of  the 
home  and  permitted  to  walk  the  streets  and  to  work  under 
alien  roofs:  for  the  first  time  they  are  being  prized  more 
for  their  labor  power  than  for  their  innocence,  their  tender 
beauty,  their  ephemeral  gaiety.  Society  cares  more  for  the 
products  they  manufacture  than  for  their  immemorial 
ability  to  reaffirm  the  charm  of  existence.  Never  before 
have  such  numbers  of  boys  earned  money  independently 
of  the  family  life  and  felt  themselves  free  to  spend  it  as 
they  choose  in  the  midst  of  vice  deliberately  disguised  as 
pleasure. 

The  stupid  experiment  of  organizing  work  and  failing  to 
organize  play  has,  of  course,  brought  about  a  fine  revenge. 
The  love  of  pleasure  will  not  be  denied;  and  when  it  has 
turned  into  all  sorts  of  malignant  and  vicious  appetites, 
then  we,  the  middle  aged,  grow  quite  distracted  and  resort 
to  all  sorts  of  restrictive  measures.     We  even  try  to  dam 

^Leadership  of  Girls'  Activities,  Moxcey,  pages  16-17. 


144  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

up  the  sweet  fountain  itself  because  we  are  affrighted  by 
these  neglected  streams;  but  almost  worse  than  the  restric- 
tive measures  is  our  apparent  belief  that  the  city  and  the 
church  have  no  obligation  in  the  matter,  an  assumption 
upon  which  the  modern  city  and  the  church  turn  over  to 
commercialism  practically  all  the  provisions  for  public 
recreation.^ 

The  Sunday-school  worker  has  therefore  no  alternative 
but  to  throw  himself  into  the  recreational  life  of  his  pupils. 
He  may  ignore  his  responsibility;  he  cannot  thereby  dis- 
charge it.  His  may  be  the  fine  opportunity  to  direct  the  fun 
and  amusements,  the  social  gatherings,  and  the  construc- 
tive and  organized  play  so  as  to  aid  in  developing  social 
living  and  in  shaping  personal  character;  or  he  may  neg- 
lect and  so  lose  that  vital  touch  with  youth  which  makes 
the  teacher  or  officer  a  friend  and  comrade,  and  his  lessons 
real  and  penetrating.  What,  then,  are  the  directions  that 
should  be  followed  toward  helping  youth  at  this  vital 
point?  What  lines  of  recreational  life  shall  one  enter  into, 
and  how  shall  one  organize  the  "fun"  life  of  his  class? 

3.  Aims  of  the  recreational  program.  The  items  of 
a  recreational  program  should  include  one  or  more  of  the 
following  ends:  (1)  body  building  and  health;  (2)  skill 
and  self-mastery;  (3)  knowledge;  (4)  social  adjustment 
and  comradeship. 

(1)  Body  building  and  health. — The  growth  of  the  body 
during  these  years  calls  for  abundance  of  exercise  to 
strengthen  the  rapidly  expanding  muscles,  furnish  the  lungs 
with  abundance  of  oxygen  and  the  various  parts  of  the 
organism  with  plenty  of  blood.  Appetites  under  normal 
conditions  of  health  are  good,  and  exercise  is  one  way 
nature  has  of  promoting  assimilation.  Modern  civilization 
demands  an  undue  amount  of  sedentary  living,  at  school, 
in  the  office  and  store,  and  at  the  machine  in  the  factory. 
To  correct  the  "slouch"  and  "stoop"  that  come  so  frequently 
during  youth  exercise  is  needed.     Better  exercise  in   the 


1  The  Spirit  of  Youth  and  the  City  Streets,  Addams,  pages  6-7. 


CHARACTER  THROUGH  RECREATION     145 

open  air  than  indoors:  better  exercise  with  some  end  in 
view  than  exercise  for  exercise'  sake.  Such  body-building 
and  health-developing  exercises  are  found  in  hikes,  camp- 
ing, hunting,  skating,  skiing,  horseback  riding,  bicycling, 
swimming,  and  the  various  athletic  contests  and  games. 

It  is  astonishing  how  little  is  being  done  by  the  Sunday 
school  to  aid  body  building  when  one  realizes  how  impera- 
tive such  training  is,  how  little  equipment  is  necessary, 
how  great  the  appreciation  of  our  pupils,  and  how  large 
the  dividends  in  the  lives  of  adults  who  cooperate  with 
youth.  About  the  last  thing  that  a  church  needs  is  a  gym- 
nasium; the  first  is  enough  interest  and  common  sense  to 
utilize  the  resources  at  hand.  A  hike  requires  the  fore- 
sight of  an  adult  leader  in  selecting  a  purpose,  a  route, 
and  the  provisions  for  what  may  happen  on  the  way.  The 
purpose  may  be  to  spend  the  day  beside  the  river,  to  fish,  or 
simply  to  stop  to  build  the  fire,  cook  some  "hot  dogs,"  play 
games,  and  to  return  home  tired,  hungry,  and  happy.  It 
may  include  an  excursion  to  a  factory,  a  museum,  a  park, 
a  historical  «cene,  a  children's  ward  in  a  hospital,  an  or- 
phanage, or  some  other  place  of  interest.  On  a  hike  or 
excursion  something  more  than  body  building  is  going  on: 
Social  living  is  there  and  its  adjustments;  and  knowledge 
is  being  extended.  In  woodcraft  skill  is  also  being  acquired. 
Boys  and  girls  of  these  years  like  the  fellowship  of  the 
"big  brother"  or  the  "big  sister."  No  one  who  has  lived 
in  the  open  with  youth  for  a  day  can  fail  to  discover  a 
new  comradeship  growing  up  between  him  and  his  class. 

(2)  Skill  and  self-mastery. — With  the  consciousness  of  in- 
creasing powers  youth  wishes  to  become  expert  in  their  use. 
In  handling  his  own  body,  in  manipulating  objects  about 
him,  and  in  adjusting  himself  to  others  he  wants  to  know 
how  to  do  things.  "I'll  bet  you  can't  do  so  and  so"  is  fol- 
lowed by  "I  can  do  it  better  than  you  can."  Estimates  of 
the  worth  of  individuals  are  based  on  what  they  can  do, 
especially  on  what  they  can  do  that  shows  physical  strength 
or  skillful  manipulation. 


146  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

The  Scout  program  of  woodcraft  is  to  promote  skill  in 
liandling  oneself  under  natural  conditions.  A  camera  club 
is  organized  to  promote  skill  in  photography.  Canoe  build- 
ing is  the  preliminary  to  canoeing,  both  demanding  skill, 
one  in  construction,  and  the  other  in  execution.  Basketry 
yields  a  double  product  of  property  and  of  skill.  Games, 
sports,  and  similar  adventures  prove  attractive  and  valuable 
outlets  for  the  physical  energies,  develop  muscle  and 
nerve  coordination,  and  necessitate  skill.  Can  you  not 
recall  the  thrill  of  your  first  successful  attempt  to  swim  on 
your  back,  to  cut  a  figure  8  on  your  skates,  to  fly  your 
first  kite,  to  win  your  first  game  of  tennis?  Wrestling  and 
boxing  not  only  demand  muscle  but  skill  in  attack  and  in 
defense. 

fS)  Knoivledge. — We  have  been  thinking  almost  entirely 
in  terms  of  activity  of  the  muscular  sort;  it  is  time  to 
recall  that  youth  demands  also  knowledge,  gained  in  part 
as  an  incident  to  acquiring  skill  and  in  the  more  muscular 
exertions,  but  gained  also  through  other  means.  Nature 
is  alluring  not  alone  for  the  opportunity  to  exercise  our 
muscles  but  as  a  field  for  mental  exploration.  The  fiowers, 
the  trees,  the  birds,  the  study  of  the  heavens,  fungi,  and 
animals — indeed,  every  aspect  of  nature — furnish  the  needed 
"books"  for  youths'  advance.  A  program  of  recreation 
must  take  account  of  the  insistent  demand  of  the  young  to 
know  as  well  as  to  do.  Not  in  stilted  lessons  but  in  the 
firsthand  study  of  nature  under  a  competent  guide  is  to 
be  found  the  recreational  outlet  desired. 

If  you  start  out  to  find  hepaticas,  or  to  see  whether  a 
fern  lives  in  a  certain  wood,  or  to  find  out  how  many 
varieties  of  fungi  can  be  found  within  three  miles  of  the 
city  limits,  or  to  see  how  pottery  is  made,  or  beaver  hats, 
or  where  a  certain  road  leads  to,  you  know  what  has  been 
accomplished  and  when  to  come  home.^ 

Reading  is  made  doubly  interesting  in  the  retelling  of 
the  tale  to  others.     And  reading  itself  may  be  stimulated 

'  Leadership  of  Girls'  Activilies,  Moxcey,  page  38. 


CHARACTER  THROUGH  RECREATION     147 

and  directed  through  the  spirit  of  the  group.  Story-telling, 
arts  and  crafts,  music  and  art,  and  dramatic  presentation 
all  come  in  for  a  part  in  the  recreational  program,  each 
ministering  not  alone  to  skill  and  self-expression  but  to 
mental  enlargement.  Domestic  science,  studies  in  citizen- 
ship, trips  abroad  by  stay-at-homes,  discussion  on  and  prac- 
tice in  first  aid,  debates,  all  suggest  the  need  to  know  in 
order  to  do,  and  to  do  well. 

(Ji)  Social  adjustment  and  comradeship. — But  one  should 
never  forget  that  all  this  fun,  this  endeavor  to  build  body 
and  to  acquire  skill,  to  know  in  order  that  one  may  do,  have 
vital  connection  with  that  consuming  desire  to  live  with 
one's  fellows,  to  be  a  comrade,  and  to  share  in  the  social 
group.  It  is  for  this  reason,  this  insistent  demand  for 
feeding  the  social  nature,  that  many  enterprises  during 
these  years  must  be  cooperative  to  catch  the  interest  of 
the  young.  One  may  study  flowers,  birds,  butterflies,  ants, 
books,  alone;  but  one  has  much  more  relish  for  the  under- 
taking when  one's  comrades  are  engaged  in  the  same  enter- 
prise. 

Organized  play,  whether  it  is  the  simple  hike,  the  well- 
organized  games  such  as  tennis  and  baseball,  the  highly 
complex  production  of  a  pantomime  or  a  drama,  demands 
social  cooperation,  is,  in  fact,  a  school  in  social  living. 
We  learn  how  to  live  with  our  fellows  not  by  being  in  con- 
tiguous relation  to  them  but  by  living  with  them,  sharing 
their  tasks,  their  pleasures,  their  enterprises.  It  is  the 
give-and-take  of  the  games  which  teaches  good  sportsman- 
ship, pcrifice  for  the  group,  loyalty,  as  well  as  develops 
muscle  and  gains  the  exact  and  spontaneous  cooperation  of 
nerve,  brain,  and  movement.  Not  to  know  how  to  take 
defeat  is  to  pave  the  way  for  social  revolution  and  bank- 
ruptcy. Not  to  know  how  to  live  together  is  the  clear 
path  to  individualism  and  anarchy. 

4.  How  to  begin.  All  thus  far  indicates  the  enormous 
value  found  in  the  recreation  of  the  young  and  points  out 
how  the  values  are  discovered  in  the  different  forms  of  play 


148  LEADERS    OP    YOUTH 

life.  How  shall  the  teacher  set  about  his  task  as  leader? 
Many  who  acknowledge  the  value  of  such  programs  hesitate 
to  embark  in  the  enterprise,  feeling  their  own  limitations 
in  knowledge  and  in  skill.  The  best  way  to  begin  is  to 
begin.  "Learn  by  doing"  is  a  good  pedagogical  maxim,  not 
less  applicable  here  than  elsewhere.  Find  out  by  observa- 
tion what  the  pupils  are  doing,  what  they  like  to  do. 
Try  the  hike  and  get  acquainted  with  the  boys  and  girls. 
They  can  teach  you,  if  you  are  an  apt  pupil,  how  to  have 
a  good  time  and  what  they  think  a  good  time  is.  A  few 
suggestions  will  help,  perhaps,  but  the  chief  thing  is  to 
get  your  "nerve  up"  and  start  in. 

(1)  Plan  tMngs,  so  far  as  possible,  before  you  undertake 
any  recreation. — If  a  hike,  know  the  road  before  taking  the 
group  over  it.  If  visiting  an  institution,  prepare  the  way 
by  getting  the  cooperation  as  well  as  the  permission  of 
those  in  charge.  If  out  just  for  a  "nature  ramble,"  fix  a 
time  of  going,  for  lunch,  and  for  returning.  If  a  game  is 
the  objective,  see  that  those  responsible  have  balls,  clubs, 
racquets,  and  other  paraphernalia  in  readiness.  If  a  party 
is  the  intention,  plan  program,  games,  "eats,"  etc.,  in  ad- 
vance. 

(2)  Keep  things  goitig  after  once  begun. — Prevent  idle 
moments,  dull  moments,  when  youth  will  feel  the  need 
of  supplementing  the  day's  fun  by  his  own  originality. 
These  are  the  moments  that  things  "get  away"  from  one. 
Besides,  the  average  group  of  intermediates  is  not  ready 
spontaneously  to  fill  in  time.  The  seniors  are  but  little 
better. 

(3)  Be  sure  of  the  ''eats''  if  there  are  to  be  any. — Youth- 
ful appetites  are  prodigious. 

(.))  Do  7iot  try  to  do  it  all  yourself. — Get  a  recreational 
committee  in  your  class  or  department  and  work  with  it. 
It  will  be  very  helpful  in  suggestions  and  very  willing 
to  aid  in  the  execution  of  your  plans. 

('))  Make  the  class  the  unit  of  the  larger  part  of  the  rec- 
reational life. — Next  let  the  class  function  with  other  boys' 


CHARACTER  THROUGH  RECREATION     149 

classes,  and  the  girls  with  other  girls'  classes,  in  a  joint  en- 
terprise. Least  often,  seldom  in  the  intermediate  years,  plan 
departmental  social  affairs.  Among  the  seniors  the  depart- 
mental forms  of  recreation  become  more  frequent.  It  is  not 
to  keep  the  boys  and  girls  apart  that  these  suggestions  are 
made,  for  God  made  both  male  and  female  to  dwell  in  fami- 
lies; but  it  is  true  that  the  boys  have  the  best  times  during 
the  earlier  years  when  carrying  on  their  recreations  by 
themselves.  And  it  is  further  true  that  too  frequent  ming- 
ling of  the  sexes  in  the  senior  years  compels  the  cudgeling  of 
brains  to  provide  adequate  fun  that  shall  not  degenerate 
into  the  highly  questionable  old-fashioned  kissing  games 
and  similar  enterprises  of  the  days  gone  by  (?). 

5.  Questionable  amusements.  It  remains  to  say  a  word 
about  certain  types  of  recreation  frequently  called  in 
question  by  thoughtful  workers.  Commercialized  amuse- 
ments are  all  under  the  suspicion  of  being  conducted  for 
the  benefit  of  the  pocketbook  of  their  owners,  and  not  for 
the  welfare  and  morals  of  the  young.  The  theater,  the 
"movie"  house,  the  dance  hall,  and  the  pool  room  all  come 
under  the  head  of  commercialized  amusements,  "White 
cities,"  commercialized  parks,  beaches,  and  pleasure 
grounds  should  be  added  to  the  list. 

To  condemn  these  amusements  gets  us  nowhere.  The 
young  will  not  take  our  words  for  it;  they  will  insist  upon 
seeing  for  themselves  and  upon  having  an  opportunity  to 
judge  for  themselves.  The  safest  program — safest,  that  is, 
for  the  young — is  to  fill  the  leisure  hours  so  full  of  inter- 
ests that  less  wholesome  activities  will  have  little  attrac- 
tion. This  will  not  only  monopolize  their  time  but,  if  the 
recreation  is  what  it  should  be,  will  help  the  pupils  to 
form  their  judgment  of  what  good  fun  is. 

The  second  step  in  the  program  is  to  interest  them  in 
those  commercialized  forms  of  recreation  which  are  really 
worth  while.  The  difficulty  of  the  task  is  no  excuse  for 
its  neglect.  We  shall  have  to  see  again  with  their  eyes. 
Adventure     is    alluring.      Broad     humor     of     the     Charlie 


150  LEADERS    OF   YOUTH 

Chaplin  type  has  its  place  in  these  years.  But  what  we 
must  do  is  positively  to  point  out  what  is  really  worth 
while,  to  recommend  good  pictures,  good  places  of  commer- 
cialized sport,  and  to  help  the  community  to  lift  its  recrea- 
tional standards  above  the  vulgar  and  the  immoral 
for  all.  Melodrama  on  stage  or  screen — those  plays  in 
which  virtue  receives  its  reward,  and  vice  its  immediate 
punishment — is  far  less  harmful  than  is  the  drama  in 
which  religion,  family  life,  honesty,  sobriety,  and  virtue 
are  held  up  to  ridicule.  For  in  the  latter  the  very  founda- 
tions of  morality  are  shaken;  in  the  former  judgments 
already  established  are  reenforced. 

The  law  in  most  States  prevents  our  pupils  from  hanging 
about  poolrooms,  so  that  these  are  outside  our  discussion. 
The  public  dance  hall,  also,  except  among  certain  of  our 
young  people  in  the  more  congested  parts  of  our  large  cities, 
is  also  closed  or  ignored,  except  possibly  by  a  very  small 
number  of  our  seniors.  Parties  filled  with  active  fun  will 
most  easily  act  as  prophylactics  against  these  iniquitous 
places.  For  the  few,  personal  constructive  advice  must 
be  given  as  to  why  moral  risks  are  run  in  the  atmosphere 
of  the  public  dance.  The  whole  of  our  effort  must  be 
directed  toward  the  positive  construction  of  healthy  ideals 
of  fun,  of  wholesome  regard  for  one's  own  body,  and  of 
highest  regard  for  the  sanctity  of  those  about  us,  boys 
or  girls.  This  can  be  accomplished  in  small  part  by  word 
of  mouth;  it  must  be  wrought  in  large  measure  by  enter- 
ing into  and  making  wholesome  the  entire  range  of  the 
pupil's  play  life. 

"The  common  problem^yours,  mine,  everyone's, — 
Is  not  to  fancy  what  were  fair  in  life 
Provided  it  could  be,  but,  finding  first 
What  may  be,  then,  find  how  to  make  it  fair 
Up  to  our  means:  a  very  different  thing." — Browning. 

6.    A  seasonal  program  of  recreation. 

CI)  Spring. — Outdoor  activities: 

Baseball;    though  playing  outdoors,  use  indoor  baseball 


CHARACTER  THROUGH  RECREATION      151 

for  girls,  making  the  diamond  smaller.  Follow  the  regular 
rules  of  the  game. 

Tennis. 

Bicycling,  horseback  riding,  rowing. 

Hiking  and  excursioning:  Flower  hunts,  bird-observation 
trips,  and  other  nature  trips  advisable.  A  day's  hike  with 
camp  fire  is  delightful.  Nature  is  urging  young  life  into 
the  open. 

Croquet. 

Archery. 

Volleyball.  Play  in  the  open,  using  a  tennis  net  or  rope 
if  a  regulation  net  is  not  available. 

Games:  Three-deep,  prisoner's  base,  run-sheep-run,  dodge- 
ball,  duck-on-a-rock,  endball,  captainball,  punchball,  basket- 
ball, Newcomb,  hand  tennis. 

Track  events:  potato  race,  tug-of-war,  hurdles,  relay 
races,  fifty-yard  dash,  hundred-yard  dash,  three-leg  race, 
wheel-barrow  race,  sack  race,  high  jump,  broad  jump,  run- 
ning broad  jump,  pole  vault,  elephant  race. 

Indoor  activities: 

"Feeds":  With  these  can  be  combined  by  the  ingenious 
teacher  much  lesson  preparation.  To  make  study  a  pleas- 
ure, the  greatest  fun  in  the  world,  is  one  of  the  objectives 
in  these  gatherings. 

Games:  checkers,  carroms,  crokinole,  authors,  dominoes, 
etc. 

Story-telling  (interesting  to  both  girls  and  boys). 

Movement  games:  going-to-Jerusalem,  spin  the  platter, 
flying  cloud,  ring-on-the-string,  etc. 

"How-to-do-things"  talks:  how  to  make  a  good  picture, 
how  to  make  pottery,  how  to  bind  a  book,  etc.  These  talks 
should  be  the  beginning  of  craftsmanship.  Provision  should 
be  made  to  put  the  ideas  into  immediate  practice. 

Parties  of  the  whole  department:  Easter  parties  and 
Saint  Patrick's  Day  parties. 

Use  the  indoor  suggestions  above  as  to  movement  games, 
adding  charades,  peanut  hunt,  guessing  games,  and  the 
like. 

(2)  Summer. — All  the  foregoing  can  be  used.  The  hikes 
must  have  as  their  objective  further  knowledge  of  nature. 
They  may  be  lengthened  as  daylight  permits  but  not  car- 
ried into  the  hours  of  night. 

Night  in  the  woods:  This  one-night  camp  is  easily  pro- 
vided for,  is  inexpensive,  and  affords  great  delight.  Better 
not  extend  the  camp  too  long,  as  this  endangers  the  limited 
food  resources  and  the  mental  resourcefulness  of  the  leader. 


152  LEADERS    OP    YOUTH 

Camp:  The  vacation  gives  opportunity  for  camping, 
requiring  careful  preparation,  considerable  expense,  and 
time.  A  wholesome  location,  plenty  of  food  of  the  sort 
easily  prepared, — unless  a  cook  is  along — pure  water  easily 
accessible,  regulations  and  the  enforcement  of  them  by  the 
leader,  and  a  well-arranged  and  full-time  program  are  the 
essentials. 

Department  picnic:  This  should  be  undertaken  after 
careful  preparation.  It  should  be  held  at  a  place  giving 
opportunity  for  games,  fishing,  boating,  and  swimming  if 
possible.  The  great  thing  is  a  well-prepared  program. 
Keep  the  young  people  busy,  and  they  will  be  happy.  Good 
"eats"  are  necessary.  Plan  track  events,  running,  jumping, 
and  the  like. 

(3)  Fall  a7icl  ivinter. — The  nature  of  recreations  in  these 
seasons  will  depend  somewhat  on  the  geographical  location. 
Fall  weather  is  glorious  for  outdoor  fun,  hikes,  one-night 
camps,  and  athletic  sports.  Nutting  parties  come  in  now 
with  their  annual  appeal. 

Football  is  the  all-consuming  interest  of  boys.  Tennis 
still  holds  a  high  place  with  girls.  Outdoor  volley  ball 
can  still  be  played  with  interest  by  either. 

Colder  weather  drives  the  young  to  indoor  sports.  Games 
will  be  needed.  (See  earlier  list.)  Adventure  and  romance 
enjoyed  through  the  experience  of  the  printed  page  can 
become  a  group  enterprise  if  coupled  with  story-telling. 
Debating  holds  a  high  place  in  the  minds  of  seniors. 

Handicraft  for  both  boys  and  girls  should  be  encour- 
aged and  prosecuted  as  winter  gives  larger  and  larger 
opportunity  for  such  indoor  interests. 

Department  parties  come  in  for  their  chance. 

In  the  snow-and-ice  country  this  is  the  time  to  encourage 
skating,  skiing,  and  winter  hiking  in  the  woods.  Nature 
is  never  more  alluring  to  hardy  souls  than  in  her  winter 
dress. 

Questions 

1.  From  the  point  of  view  of  youth  what  is  the  chief  end 
of  recreation? 

2.  How  may  recreation  become  a  socializing  agency? 

3.  How  is  leisure  time  spent  by  the  young  of  your  com- 
munity? 

4.  What  four  objectives  should  one  have  in  building  a 
recreational  program?    Illustrate  how  each  may  be  attained. 


CHARACTER  THROUGH  RECREATION      153 

5.  What  five  suggestions  are  made  to  those  wishing  to 
lead  youth  in  their  recreational  life? 

6.  What  is  to  be  done  about  commercialized  types  of  rec- 
reation? 

Observation 

Plan  a  hike  or  outing  with  a  group  from  these  depart- 
ments. After  it  is  over,  list  each  step  of  the  venture. 
Opposite  each  item  give  your  estimate  of  its  value  and  of 
their  interest  in  it.  Be  sure  to  list  the  weak  as  well  as 
the  strong  points. 


CHAPTER  XV 

CHARACTER  THROUGH    SERVICE 

"Not  what  we  give,  but  what  we  share; 
For  the  gift  without  the  giver  is  bare; 
Who  gives  himself  with  his  gift  feeds  three — 
Himself,   his   hungry   neighbor,   and   me." — Lowell. 

That  the  young  should  be  trained  in  service  is  conceded 
by  all;  what  is  to  be  accomplished  in  such  training  is  not 
equally  clear  to  all.  We  want  the  boys  and  girls  to  learn 
to  give  time  and  money  to  various  enterprises,  to  help 
the  needy,  to  sew  for  the  hospital  children  or  to  make 
scrapbooks  for  them,  to  aid  in  missionary  projects,  home 
and  foreign,  and  to  render  willingly  and  cheerfully  those 
innumerable  services  about  the  home,  the  school  and 
church,  and  the  community  which  are  characteristic  of  the 
Christian  spirit;  but  do  we  see  clearly  what  ends  we  have  in 
view  in  all  such  effort?  Can  one  think  how  these  acts 
are  to  build  into  the  character  structure  of  the  pupil?  and, 
further,  is  it  certain  what  services  are  to  be  asked  and 
why  these  particular  services  should  be  asked  just  now? 

1.  Awakening  sympathy.  The  most  obvious  end  sought 
in  engaging  pupils  in  service  is  to  awaken  and  enlarge  the 
sympathies.  The  self-centered  life  of  the  little  child  must 
become  other-centered.  Sympathy,  or  "feeling  with,"  comes 
primarily  by  being  put  in  the  identical  feeling  situation. 
We  pity  those  who  suffer  but  we  sympathize  with  those 
who  are  passing  through  the  same  afflictions  we  have  ex- 
perienced. 

Now,  our  common  experiences  in  life  are  so  numerous 
that  of  necessity  we  develop  a  deal  of  sympathy.  We  have 
all  been  burned,  pounded  our  fingers,  cut  our  hands,  been 
ill,  and  had  disappointments.     Very  early  in   life  we  de- 

154 


CHARACTER  THROUGH  SERVICE  155 

velop  out  of  these  common  experiences  a  stock  of  common 
feeling.  All,  too,  have  been  happy,  met  our  surprises,  dis- 
covered friends,  experienced  kindness  and  hate. 

Sympathies  are  increased,  vicariously,  through  the  im- 
agination. Never  perfectly  but  approximately  we  perceive 
the  sufferings  of  others  and  participate  in  their  joys.  Ob- 
viously such  vicarious  sympathy,  sympathies  generated 
through  our  ability  to  Imagine  others'  experiences,  are 
possible  only  as  our  own  experiences  give  us  a  background 
to  build  upon,  and  our  imaginations  have  developed  to  some 
considerable  extent.  Parents  denied  the  blessing  of  chil- 
dren in  their  own  homes  can  sense  in  some  degree  the 
loneliness  of  the  home  bereft  of  the  little  one. 

Vicarious  sympathies  can  be  quickened  as  we  participate 
with  others  in  their  experiences.  Sharing  what  we  have 
with  those  who  need,  sharing  our  pleasures  with  others 
less  fortunate,  understanding  the  lives  of  those  who  are 
different,  those  who  live  in  other  countries  or  are  of  other 
races  and  of  other  social  positions,  is  the  best  way  of  build- 
ing up  mental  pictures  of  these,  our  brothers  and  sisters, 
which  shall  enlarge  our  experiences  and  open  our  hearts. 
The  narrow  range  of  childhood's  social  contacts  must  be 
increased  by  personally  engaging  in  enterprises  with  others 
different  from  ourselves  and,  secondly,  by  learning  and 
sharing,  even  indirectly,  the  lives  of  those  geographically 
far  removed.  The  missionary  enterprise  is  only  a  part 
of  the  scheme  to  build  up  this  larger  social  apperception. 

2.  Skill  in  service.  A  second  end  sought  in  familiariz- 
ing the  young  with  plans  of  service  is  to  train  them  to 
serve,  to  make  them  expert  in  the  hows  and  the  whys  of 
the  work.  Efficiency  is  demanded  here  if  our  helpfulness 
is  to  be  of  the  largest  value.  The  sympathies  of  the  young 
are  easily  excited;  the  experience  of  these  same  youths  is 
too  limited  to  guide  them  in  ministering  wisely  to  those 
whose  lives  they  would  help.  To  give  a  lame  beggar  a  dime 
is  the  simplest  way  to  satisfy  the  promptings  of  a  sym- 
pathetic heart  but  not  always,  if  ever,  the  wisest.     There 


156  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

is  an  art  in  ministering  to  others  which  can  be  learned  only 
by  practice.  With  the  practice  must  go  increase  in  knowl- 
edge so  as  to  lay  a  foundation  for  practice  in  sound  theory. 

A  program  of  service  in  our  departments,  then,  must 
serve  to  acquaint  the  pupils  with  social  conditions;  must 
let  them  discover  what  is  really  helpful  and  what  is  only 
sentimentally  satisfying  to  the  one  serving,  and  how, 
tactfully  and  wisely,  to  give  the  proffered  aid.  This  will 
require  analysis  of  social  conditions,  not  abstractly  but 
concretely,  as  the  class  comes  in  contact  with  want,  misery, 
neglect,  and  community  indifference.  It  means  the  edu- 
cation of  our  pupils  in  what  Christianity  demands  socially 
of  one  who  would  follow  the  Master,  who  "went  about 
doing  good."  It  means  catching  a  vision  of  real  democracy, 
with  justice  and  equal  rights  for  all,  in  community,  State, 
nation,  and  the  world.  It  means  not  reaching  down  to 
others  but  reaching  out  to  enrich  our  lives  and  others 
through  our  common  humanity  and  brotherhood.  It  means 
in  its  broadest  aspects  experience  in  the  knowledge  and 
technique  of  social  living. 

3.  Right  habits  of  social  living.  A  third  end  before 
the  leader  of  youth  as  he  plans  the  service  activities  of 
his  department  is  to  cultivate  habits  of  social  living.  It  is 
not  enough  to  have  sympathies.  These  may  evaporate  in 
sentimentality  that  ends  in  fine  feelings,  and  nothing  more. 
It  is  not  sufficient  that  the  youth  knows  how  and  when  to 
render  aid  to  the  unfortunate.  He  may  feel  for  and  know 
how  to  live  socially,  yet  remain  paralyzed  when  demands 
come  from  all  sides  to  serve  his  fellow  men.  He  must  be 
habituated  to  a  life  of  self-denial  and  of  service.  His  atti- 
tudes, through  much  practice  of  social  living,  must  become 
fixed,  his  habit  of  throwing  himself  into  the  social  program 
of  uplift  must  become  permanent  and  unchanging.  So 
these  years  are  fraught  with  special  significance  as  being 
the  time  above  all  others  for  establishing  those  constant, 
habitual  ways  of  social  thinking  and  action  which,  through- 
out the  remainder  of  his  life,  shall  compel  him  to  let  no 


CHARACTER  THROUGH  SERVICE  157 

voice  of  distress  pass  unheard,  no  ill  adjustment  of  social 
relations  remain  sanctioned  because  established.  This  can 
come  about  only  as  he  practices,  not  occasionally  but  con- 
stantly, the  life  of  service.  Abundant  opportunities  for 
putting  himself  into  the  lives  of  others  must  be  presented, 
repeatedly  plans  for  community  betterment  must  compel 
his  activity,  daily  and  weekly  he  must  make  some  life 
better  by  the  effort  that  he  puts  forth.  Only  thus  can  he 
learn  to  function  as  a  Christian,  Christianizing  all  of  life 
about  him  as  the  Master  works  through  him. 

4.  Essentials  for  a  plan  of  service.  In  planning  for 
service  the  department  or  class  leader  should  bear  in  mind 
four  things:  The  program  of  service  should  be  a  real  expres- 
sion of  the  life  and  interests  of  the  pupils;  it  should  have 
a  wide  range  of  interests,  that  sympathies  should  broaden 
to  meet  the  world's  needs;  it  should  recognize  the  seasonal 
interests  of  the  young;  and  it  should  be  continuous  through- 
out the  year. 

(1)  Real  and  interesting  service. — To  make  service  ex- 
press the  real  life  and  interests  of  the  young  such  activities 
must  be  selected  as  shall  be  within  their  comprehension  and 
within  their  ability  to  administer  personally.  Giving  to 
unknown  heathen  has  little  educative  value,  perhaps  none; 
giving  to  a  school  or  to  a  hospital  in  a  mission  field  in 
which  the  pupils  have  become  personally  interested  teaches 
service  of  a  high  type.  Contributing  to  the  associated 
charities  of  the  city  teaches  little  of  service;  helping  a 
needy  family  in  which  the  class  has  been  interested  through 
the  same  organization  is  teaching  service  directly.  Bet- 
ter still  is  the  opportunity  actually  to  buy  the  shoes  that 
the  needy  child  shall  be  able  to  go  to  school — shoes  that 
the  society's  agents  shall  place  in  the  hands  of  the  child. 
Giving  to  an  orphanage  lies  nearer  the  level  of  the  pupil's 
interest,  but  supporting  one  orphan  is  sti-ll  more  direct. 

It  is  well  to  have  each  give  the  result  of  his  own  work  or 
thought.  For  instance,  to  raise  corn  or  potatoes,  to  raise 
chickens   and   sell   the  eggs,  to  forego  the   pleasure  of  a 


158  LEADERS    OP    YOUTH 

"movie"  or  a  soft  drink  in  order  that  the  money  not  thus 
spent  may  go  to  some  worthy  and  well-known  cause  is  far 
better  than  to  pass  over  to  the  object  money  given  directly 
by  the  parents.  The  former  becomes  one's  own  gift,  one's 
own  sharing.  And  sharing  life  with  others  is  the  end  to  be 
.sought  always.  It  is  best,  so  far  as  possible,  to  have  the 
pupils  put  themselves  into  their  service.  A  crate  of  eggs 
for  the  children's  ward  of  a  hospital,  simple  garments  made 
for  the  needy,  picture  post  cards  collected  for  the  mission 
schools,  and  actual  deeds  of  neighborliness  are  far  better 
than  money  contributions;  for  into  these  enterprises  the 
individual  has  thrown  himself.  To  carry  flowers  to  the 
sick,  to  sing  at  an  old  people's  home,  to  visit  an  orphan- 
age and  to  play  with  the  children,  to  carry  in  the  wood 
for  a  needy  neighbor,  are  deeds  of  service  of  the  most 
intimate  and  personal  type;  therefore,  of  most  vital 
moment. 

Nor  should  one  forget  that  many  forms  of  service  for 
the  church  and  the  church  school  are  quite  as  much 
service  as  these  more  benevolent  and  philanthropic  deeds. 
The  steps  need  repairing,  a  task  within  the  powers  of  the 
department;  the  yard  needs  cleaning  up;  windows  need 
new  lights;  the  building  frequently  requires  cleaning,  the 
stove  blacking,  and  the  general  untidiness  and  disrepute  of 
the  physical  equipment  need  to  be  removed.  The  worst- 
looking  property  in  many  a  rural  and  village  community 
is  the  church.  Why  not  purchase  a  beautiful  picture  for 
the  class,  for  the  department,  or  for  the  church?  Cannot 
flowers  be  placed  upon  the  pulpit  each  Sunday  of  the 
flowering  season?  Are  any  boys  or  girls  unconnected  with 
any  Sunday  school  in  the  community?  These  are  services 
easily  within  the  ability  of  this  department  to  perform,  the 
doing  of  which  not  only  helps  others,  thus  building  up  a 
sense  of  social  fellowship,  but  develops  church  loyalty  in 
the  pupils  themselves. 

The  community,  likewise,  comes  in  for  its  share  of  atten- 
tion.   Clean-up  week  can  be  prompted  and  engaged  in  by  the 


CHARACTER  THROUGH  SERVICE  159 

young;  drinking  fountains  are  all  too  rare;  swat-the-fly 
campaigns  can  be  entered  into;  keeping  the  garbage  cans 
covered  can  be  encouraged;  and  a  study  of  the  recrea- 
tional life  of  the  young  of  the  community  may  be  under- 
taken. Why  not  invite  some  class  from  among  foreign- 
speaking  Sunday  schools  to  be  the  guest  of  your  class,  thus 
building  up  a  better  understanding  of  the  foreigner?  Bet- 
ter yet,  why  not  entertain  such  a  class  for  an  evening,  thus 
getting  "close  up"  to  the  foreigner's  viewpoint?  At  Christ- 
mas the  sale  of  Red  Cross  stamps  can  be  undertaken,  sur- 
veys of  the  city  regarding  church  and  Sunday-school  attend- 
ance can  be  projected. 

(2)  Wide  range  of  social  iyiterests. — The  second  considera- 
tion is  that  the  range  of  activities  should  be  broad  enough 
to  develop  an  enlarging  social  conception.  It  is  well  to 
emphasize  the  immediate  problems  of  the  community  and 
of  the  church;  but  young  people  need  to  see  the  bigness  of 
mankind  and  the  complex  conditions  under  which  they 
live.  The  study  of  the  mountain  conditions  of  the  South, 
with  its  fine  type  of  Anglo-Saxon  manhood,  set  against  the 
narrowing  pressure  of  a  restricted  environment,  will  give  a 
city  youth  an  increased  social  outlook  and  should,  if  ade- 
quate opportunity  of  expression  be  furnished,  enrich  his 
sympathies.  To  know  the  foreign  element  of  our  cities  is 
to  gain  wider  knowledge  of  mankind,  deeper  insight  into 
their  problems.  The  Indians  have  their  own  social  and 
religious  life — a  life  much  nearer  the  life  of  primitive 
man.  It  will  surprise  some  boys  and  girls  to  learn  of  the 
fine  family  life  among  the  despised  "heathen";  for  they 
will  discover  a  spirit  of  filial  obedience  far  different  from 
the   fiippant   and   irresponsible   spirit   of  American   youth. 

What  can  be  better  than  for  a  class  to  get  into  active  cor- 
respondence with  those  who  differ  from  themselves,  to  learn 
through  such  exchange  of  letters  how  the  others  live,  what 
they  lack  that  we  have,  and  discover  for  themselves  how 
to  send  real  help  to  others?  Whether  this  interchange 
is  between  the  class  in  the  city  and  the  class  in  the  country ; 


160  LEADERS    OF   YOUTH 

between  the  white  class  in  one  school  and  the  Mexican, 
Indian,  or  Negro  class  in  another;  between  the  class  and 
the  real  Americans  of  an  Indian  Sunday  school;  or  between 
the  class  and  some  new  converts  in  a  foreign  country: 
such  correspondence  is  certain  to  lead  to  visions  of  things 
to  be  done.  Perhaps  the  class  will  be  surprised  to  find  that 
these  others  will  want  to  do  something  in  return,  send 
Japanese  pictures,  pictures  from  the  South  or  from  the 
West,  or  otherwise  to  express  their  appreciation  of  what 
has  been  done  for  them.  Such  cooperative  doing  is  the 
best  method  of  realizing  the  true  sense  of  brotherhood,  such 
as  the  Master  taught. 

(J^)  Seasonal  interests. — The  seasonal  interests  are  to  be 
kept  in  mind,  as  the  seasons  recall  one  to  certain  oppor- 
tunities for  service.  Christmas,  of  course,  is  by  far  the 
most-made-of  of  all.  But  Easter  has  its  associations  in  our 
minds.  Latin  America  makes  much  of  Easter.  Why  not, 
then,  plan  to  make  Easter  significant  by  sending  an  Easter 
greeting  to  some  of  our  Mexican  or  South  American 
cousins?  And,  now  that  we  are  embarked  on  a  great 
European  enterprise  of  missionary  activity,  we  should  not 
forget  the  prominent  place  that  Easter  holds  for  European 
peoples.  But,  to  come  nearer  home,  how  many  shut-ins 
are  being  remembered  on  this  day?  How  many  homes  for 
the  aged  are  being  brightened  by  fiowers  and  song?  Are 
Easter  eggs  going  from  the  class  or  department  to  some 
children's  ward  at  the  hospital?  Could  not  the  pupils  of 
the  teen  years  give  an  egg  hunt  for  the  school,  especially 
making  happy  those  in  the  lower  grades?  Participation  in 
the  Easter  celebration  of  church  and  Sunday  school  is  one 
service  that  can  be  rendered. 

The  beginning  of  school  means  buying  of  books.  Are 
there  any  needy  families  whose  children  are  lacking  at 
this  time?  The  beginning  of  winter  means  more  clothing 
and  more  fuel.  Are  the  members  of  the  department  certain 
that  no  one  suffers,  especially  the  children  and  the  aged 
who   are   helpless?     Ask  the   charities   association   or   the 


CHARACTER  THROUGH  SERVICE  161 

deaconess  or  the  pastor;  or,  better  yet,  go  through  the 
community  and  learn  for  oneself.  Perhaps  the  public-school 
superintendent  can  give  some  information  that  will  help. 
Certainly  the  employers  of  large  numbers  of  workmen 
can  do  so. 

Thanksgiving,  also,  is  central  in  our  thinking,  with  its 
baskets  for  the  needy,  clothing  and  fuel  against  the  cold. 
Fourth  of  July  reminds  us  of  the  responsibility  we  have  for 
our  fellow  citizens.  What  of  the  fresh-air  for  those  who 
live  in  narrow  quarters?  Can  a  day  be  spent  in  the  woods, 
accompanied  by  these  less-favored  friends?  Or  would  the 
lake  or  the  seashore  be  better?  Perhaps  the  department 
can  send  a  deserving  mother  and  her  children  to  the  coun- 
try for  a  fortnight.  Ask  the  charity  worker  or  the  editor 
of  the  city  newspaper.  Perhaps  if  you  are  in  the  country 
you  would  like  to  take  some  of  the  "fresh-air  children," 
that  they  may  have  rest,  food,  and  wholesome  living  for  a 
week  or  two. 

(5)  A  continuous  jirogram. — The  last  requirement  is  that 
the  program  should  embrace  the  whole  year,  should  be  con- 
tinuous. Too  frequently  service  in  our  classes  is  a  spasmodic 
affair.  It  becomes  tremendously  compelling  around  the 
Christmas  season,  then  dies  out  for  the  remainder  of  the 
calendar.  We  forget  that  to  make  social  living  and  feeling 
permanent  they  must  be  exercised  constantly.  It  is  so  easy 
to  "talk  over  the  lesson,"  so  hard  to  cudgel  our  brains  to 
produce  some  definite  plans  for  the  service  life  of  our 
classes.  Difficult  as  such  a  program  is,  it  must  be  entered 
into  unless  we  wish  our  pupils  to  consider  giving  and  doing 
for  others  as  mere  luxuries  in  spiritual  living.  The  all- 
the-year-round  program  should  have  continuity  combined 
with  variety.  It  should  so  far  as  possible  correlate  itself 
with  the  lessons  of  the  school;  and  it  furnishes  an  excellent 
basis  for  some  of  the  best  recreational  life  of  the  class  or 
department;  for,  after  all,  some  of  the  best  fun  in  all  life 
is  found  in  doing  for  others  (see  Chapter  XIV). 

As  merely  suggestive  the  following  schemes  for  the  ac- 


162  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

tivities  of  intermediates  and  for  seniors  are  inserted.  It 
should  be  kept  in  mind  that  intermediates  need  to  be  fur- 
nished with  simpler  activities,  those  requiring  less  analysis 
of  conditions  and  demanding  the  largest  amount  of  muscu- 
lar execution.  On  the  other  hand,  the  seniors  are  ready  to 
think  more  carefully  and  to  plan  more  intelligently  what 
they  want  to  do,  how  they  want  to  do  these  things,  and 
what  are  the  wisest  ways  of  going  about  it  to  accomplish 
their  purposes.  Still,  the  ability  to  plan  and  execute  per- 
fectly comes  only  in  the  later  years;  hence,  the  teachers 
and  other  officers  will  need  to  give  most  careful  counsel 
and  be  ready  to  suggest  lines  of  interest  and  means  of 
accomplishment. 

5.  A  seasonal  program  of  service  activities  for  in- 
termediates. 

Septemher. — Canvass  for  new  members  for  department. 
Get  ready  for  Rally  Day.  Look  out  for  poor  children  who 
need  schoolbooks.  Perhaps  some  textbooks  may  be  passed 
along. 

October. — Clean  up  about  the  church.  Plant  bulbs  for 
spring  blooming.  Send  off  Christmas  letters  and  cards  for 
the  foreign-mission  field;  a  box  for  a  mission  school;  let- 
ters. 

November. — Look  up  needy  families.  Plan  Thanksgiving 
baskets. 

December. — Find  and  help  a  needy  Sunday  school  or 
family,  and  care  for  their  Christmas  wants.  Help  in  the 
sale  of  Red  Cross  stamps.  Dress  dolls  for  a  hospital  or  a 
mission  school. 

January. — Visit  an  old  people's  home  to  sing.  Gather 
picture  post  cards  to  send  to  a  mission  field.  Missionaries 
can  use  unlimited  quantities  of  these,  especially  cards  show- 
ing how  we  live  and  what  children  do. 

February. — Celebrate  Washington's  and  Lincoln's  birth- 
days, entertaining  visitors  from  among  the  foreign  children. 

March. — Send  Easter  letters  and  cards  to  mission  fields. 
It  takes  from  one  to  two  months  to  get  these  missives 
through,  so  begin  early.  Visit  an  orphanage.  Find  what 
the  children  need.     Supply  them. 

Aj)ril. — Give  an  egg  hunt.  Color  eggs  for  the  children  in 
a  hospital  or  orphanage.  Send  a  crate  of  eggs  that  have 
been  given  by  pupils  of  department. 


CHARACTER  THROUGH  SERVICE  163 

May. — Clean  up  about  the  church  for  spring.  Plan  a 
swat-the-fly  campaign  and  a  general  clean-up  campaign  for 
the  community.  Plant  the  church  yard  with  flowers. 
Gather  flowers  for  the  church  and  for  shut-ins. 

June. — Hold  a  field  day  for  all  Intermediate-Senior  De- 
partments of  the  community.  Get  every  boy  and  girl  inter- 
ested. Present  a  picture  to  the  department  of  school.  Make 
this  a  regular  event,  and  in  a  few  years  the  church  will 
contain  some  of  the  best  in  art.  Gather  flowers  for  the 
church,  the  sick,  and  for  the  city  children. 

July. — Plan  to  help  someone  get  to  the  country  who 
needs  a  vacation ;  or  help  entertain  those  who  are  sent. 

August. — Help  get  up  the  annual  church  and  Sunday- 
school  picnic  and  fleld  day.  Make  it  a  happy  time  for  every 
boy  and  girl  in  the  church. 

Septemher. — Begin  plans  for  the  fall  canvass,  prepara- 
tory to  Rally  Day. 

6.    A  seasonal  program  of  activities  for  seniors. 

September. — Plan  the  Rally  Day  program.  Find  ways  and 
means  to  invite  everyone  of  senior  age  not  in  Sunday 
school  to  be  present. 

October. — Set  out  shrubbery  or  plant  a  tree  in  the  church 
yard  or  on  the  parsonage  lot.  See  that  out-of-town  high- 
school  students  are  brought  to  Sunday  school. 

November. — Pack  a  Thanksgiving  box  for  home-mission- 
ary preacher.  Remember  the  box  Polyanna's  family  re- 
ceived, and  don't  make  mistakes.  Domestic-science  girls 
can  cook  a  good  dinner  for  some  needy  family  to  feast  upon 
on  Thanksgiving. 

December. — Make  candy  and  pop-corn  balls  for  a  Christ- 
mas tree  for  some  needy  Sunday  school.  Pack  and  carry 
Christmas  baskets  for  the  poor.  Ask  the  charity  society 
to  name  a  deserving  family. 

January. — Arrange  a  parents'  banquet  for  the  parents  of 
the  department.  Plan  the  toasts  as  well  as  the  supper. 
Let  someone  write  a  good  song  and  set  it  to  some  popular 
air  to  sing  at  the  banquet. 

February. — Give  a  pageant  on  Washington's  or  Lincoln's 
or  Lee's  birthday  or  upon  all,  representing  the  historical 
events  connected  with  each.  Take  the  money  earned  to 
help  some  boy  or  girl  in  his  education  in  one  of  the  home- 
mission  schools. 

March. — Plan  an  early-morning  Easter  service  for  all 
seniors  in  the  community.  Get  out  the  invitations,  arrange 
for  a  good  leader  of  music  and  a  good  speaker,  and  make  it 


164  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

a  great  occasion.  If  desired,  the  service  can  be  for  all  the 
upper  grades  of  the  Sunday  school. 

April. — Look  for  flowers  for  the  church  and  the  sick. 
Spring  calls  for  flowers,  and  shut-ins  especially  appreciate  a 
bit  of  the  outer  world.  Send  off  a  box  to  some  mission 
worker  containing  books,  pictures,  cards,  and  dolls  dressed 
in  American  fashion. 

May. — Let  the  girls  give  a  May  Day  celebration  for  all 
the  girls  of  their  ages  in  the  community.  Play  the  hos- 
tess, and  play  it  well.  Let  the  boys  plan  to  have  a  drinking 
fountain  for  man  and  beast  placed  in  the  community.  Plan 
to  sell  for  some  philanthropy,  missionary  or  otherwise, 
vegetables  or  other  crops  in  season. 

June. — Present  a  picture  to  the  Sunday  school.  Join  with 
the  Intermediate  Department,  so  that  a  really  worth-while 
work  of  art  may  be  obtained. 

July. — See  that  the  community  has  some  place  for  little 
fellows  to  play — a  playground.  Visit,  if  possible,  the  fresh- 
air  camps  and  help  the  workers.  Take  one  fellow  on  the 
camping  trip  who  could  not  otherwise  get  away.  Give 
him  a  good  time. 

August. — Help  with  the  Sunday-school  picnic  and  field 
day.  See  that  no  one  is  left  out,  and  that  all  have  a  good 
time.  Look  after  the  building  of  tables,  serving  of  dinner, 
making  of  lemonade,  and  other  small  but  important  mat- 
ters. 

Septemlyer. — Write  to  each  absent  member  and  tell  him 
how  glad  you  will  be  to  see  him  back  in  Sunday  school. 
Have  a  department  banquet  and  throw  yourself  into  the 
Rally  Day  program. 

Questions 

1.  How  far  do  each  of  the  following  furnish  a  basis  for 
a  program  of  service?  Our  common  experiences,  our  im- 
aginations, our  sharing  with  others, 

2.  How  may  we  acquaint  our  pupils  with  social  condi- 
tions?   Does  the  story  play  any  part  here? 

3.  What  is  meant  by  "the  habit  of  social  living"? 

4.  Why  should  the  church  plant  and  the  Sunday  school 
be  objects  of  consideration  in  a  service  program? 

5.  How  may  service  become  the  expression  of  the  real  life 
and  interests  of  the  group? 

6.  Can  the  programs  broaden  these  interests?    How? 


CHARACTER  THROUGH  SERVICE  165 

7.  How  may  seasonal  interests  be  incorporated  into  the 
service  program? 

8.  Why  should  service  be  continued  throughout  the  year? 

Observation 

Learn  what  service  activities  the  Intermediate-Senior  De- 
partment of  your  church  undertook  during  the  last  year. 
How  far  did  the  program  fulfill  the  ideals  presented  above? 


CHAPTER  XVI 
IN    QUEST    OF    FRIENDS 

It  is  hard  to  exaggerate  the  social  liunger  of  the  young. 
The  call  to  comradeship,  to  inclusion  in  the  warmth  of 
fellowship,  to  discovery  of  friends,  rings  loud  in  the  ears 
of  youth.  If  social  worship,  recreation,  and  service  had 
no  other  end  than  to  lead  to  the  formation  of  wholesome 
friendships,  they  would  justify  their  existence  and  the 
expenditure  of  large  amounts  of  time  and  energy  on  the 
part  of  the  leaders  of  youth.  For,  after  all,  some  of  the 
most  potent  influences  in  the  lives  of  the  young,  for  good  or 
for  ill,  are  to  be  found  in  the  sort  of  friends  they  make. 
Friends  they  must  have.  Shall  mere  propinquity  determine 
the  choice  of  those  who  shall  become  the  embodiment  of 
real  and  fancied  virtues?  Or  has  the  Sunday  school  a  duty 
to  perform  in  making  wholesome  friendships  easy,  in  de- 
termining the  qualities  sought  in  our  ideal  comrades,  and 
in  idealizing  the  relations  thus  established? 

1.  Social  risks  in  friendships.  A  father  was  discuss- 
ing the  possibility  of  his  removal  to  another  community, 
due  to  business  readjustments.  "No,"  said  he,  "I  cannot 
afford  to  go  now.  My  children  are  reaching  the  years  when 
their  permanent  friendships  are  to  be  made.  They  are 
now  among  acquaintances  of  just  the  sort  that  I  should 
prefer  to  have  them  select  their  lifelong  friends  from.  To 
move  means  for  them  to  establish  new  acquaintances,  per- 
haps better,  but  perhaps  worse.  I  cannot  afford  to  take 
the  risk  of  exposing  them  to  untried  friends."  This  was 
a  case  of  unusual  penetration  on  the  part  of  a  parent,  of 
unusual  sacrifice  for  his  children. 

In  striking  confirmation  of  this  fact  note  this  experience 
of  Jane  Addams: 

166 


IN  QUEST  OF  FRIENDS  167 

One  night  at  twelve  o'clock  I  had  occasion  to  go  into  a 
large  public  dance  hall.  As  I  was  standing  by  a  rail 
looking  for  the  girl  I  had  come  to  find,  a  young  man 
approached  me  and  quite  simply  asked  me  to  introduce 
him  to  some  "nice  girl,"  saying  that  he  did  not  know  any- 
one there.  On  my  replying  that  a  public  dance  hall  was 
not  the  best  place  to  look  for  a  nice  girl  he  said:  "But  I 
don't  know  any  other  place  where  there  is  a  chance  to 
meet  any  kind  of  girl.  I'm  awfully  lonesome  since  I  came 
to  Chicago."  And  then  he  added  rather  defiantly:  "Some 
nice  girls  do  come  here!  It's  one  of  the  best  halls  in 
town."  He  was  voicing  the  bitter  loneliness  that  many 
city  men  remember  to  have  experienced  during  the  first 
years  after  they  had  come  to  town.  Occasionally  the  right 
sort  of  man  and  girl  meet  each  other  in  these  dance  halls, 
and  the  romance  that  has  such  a  tawdry  beginning  ends 
happily  and  respectably.  But,  unfortunately,  mingled  with 
respectable  young  men  seeking  to  form  acquaintance  of 
young  women  through  the  only  channel  which  is  available 
to  them  are  many  young  fellows  of  evil  purpose,  and  among 
the  girls  who  have  left  their  lonely  boarding  houses  or 
rigid  homes  for  a  "little  fling"  are  likewise  women  who 
openly  desire  to  make  money  from  the  young  men  whom 
they  meet,  and  back  of  it  all  is  the  desire  to  profit  by  the 
sale  of  intoxicating  and  doctored  drinks.' 

"Bad  companions"  is  set  down  as  one  of  the  chief  causes 
of  delinquency  by  Dr.  Healy  in  his  study  of  the  criminal. 
If  this  is  true,  then  one  of  the  great  tasks  of  the  leader 
of  youth  is  to  help  in  the  formation  of  right  companion- 
ships. This  considerable  element  in  character  building 
should  not  be  left  to  chance.  If  any  ways  can  be  devised 
to  predetermine  the  sort  of  friends  one  shall  make,  those 
ways  should  be  made  plain  and  used  by  anyone  who  would 
aid  youth  in  his  maturing  processes. 

2.  Tlie  need  of  many  acquaintances.  At  first  glance 
it  is  easy  to  believe  that  there  are  no  laws  in  the  world 
of  friendship,  that  friends  are  made  without  rime  or 
reason.  But  nothing  is  further  from  the  truth.  In  the 
first  place,  one's  friends  must  be  picked  from  among  one's 
acquaintances;  we  do  not  make  friends  from  the  unknown. 


The  Spirit  of  Youth  and  the  City  Streets,  Addams. 


168  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

Falling  in  love  at  first  sight  is  far  more  frequent  in  books 
and  magazines  than  in  real  life.  And  where  such  unex- 
pected attachments  do  occur  they  occur  only  between  those 
who  have  the  preliminary  "first  sight."  It  follows,  there- 
fore, that  the  first  step  is  to  provide  a  goodly  number  of 
possible  friends.  This  is,  as  one  may  easily  see,  not 
a  negative  but  a  positive  process.  Youth  demands  a  wealth 
of  possible  experiences.  Robbed  of  such  enrichment,  the 
boy  or  the  girl  seizes  upon  those  nearest  at  hand,  quite 
regardless  of  larger  values,  and  proceeds  to  make  boon 
companions. 

It  is  pitiful  to  find  those  whose  possibilities  of  friend 
making  have  been  limited  by  a  narrow  and  restricted  en- 
vironment. Such  limitations  may  arise  from  geographical 
isolation;  but  quite  as  often  they  come,  not  because  of 
scant  population,  but  through  some  economic  or  personal 
restriction.  How  can  wholesome  social  life  be  carried  on 
in  a  tenement,  from  which  the  young  must  find  their  asso- 
ciates, not  in  the  home  but  upon  the  streets?  And  how 
can  the  bashful,  the  timid,  the  inexperienced,  find  friends 
when  no  helping  hand  is  by  to  aid?  Undoubtedly  there 
are  others  who  also  lack  the  friend  they  fain  would  have; 
but  what  opportunity  is  furnished,  and  what  aid  is  given  to 
bring  these  friendless  ones  together? 

And  those  who  readily  make  friends — is  it  altogether 
true  that  their  range  of  acquaintance  is  large  enough  to 
guide  them  in  their  choices?  Perhaps  the  very  ones  who 
can  be  the  greatest  help  live  just  beyond  the  margin  of  their 
daily  associations.  Segregation  on  economic  or  false  social 
lines  may  have  denied  just  those  others  whose  differences 
are  needed  to  supplement  the  lives  of  these. 

It  may  be  argued  that  the  public  school,  and  especially 
the  high  school,  furnishes  our  city  boys  and  girls  with  suf- 
ficient opportunities  for  the  formation  of  friends.  This 
is  only  partially  true;  for  to  any  who  have  watched,  the 
associations  of  the  school  are  seen  to  tend  to  drop  at  the 
school  door.     Those  of  a  neighborhood  are  far  more  likely 


IN  QUEST  OF  FRIENDS  169 

to  discover  each  other's  attractions  even  when  separated 
from  each  other  by  different  school  alliances  than  are  those 
whose  days  are  passed  under  the  discipline  of  common 
school  experience.  Gangs  are  not  always  made  up  from 
one  school,  nor  are  the  cliques  of  girls  all  from  one  edu- 
cational group.  After  all,  school  has  its  tasks,  more  indi- 
vidualistic than  social,  and  not  especially  tending  to  bring 
together,  except  under  unusual  circumstances,  those  geo- 
graphically separated.  The  larger  the  school,  the  less  likely 
is  it  that  a  wide  circle  of  possible  friends  will  be  formed. 

3.  Opportunities  for  friendship  making  tkrough. 
the  Sunday  school.  This  is  why  the  Sunday  school  has 
an  unusual  opportunity  to  render  aid  at  this  vital  point  in 
the  development  of  the  pupils.  In  the  class  and  in  the 
larger  group  making  up  the  department,  the  spirit  of 
worthy  endeavor  joins  the  entire  group  in  some  good 
employment  or  in  some  well-merited  fun,  in  which  each 
may  discover  the  real  worth  of  the  other.  In  striving  after 
success  and  the  proper  completion  of  a  task  or  the  happy 
competition  of  the  game  or  the  amusement,  each  stands 
forth  in  his  own  way,  each  shows  his  true  sportsmanship 
or  his  spirit  of  cringing  cowardice,  each  is  apprized  by  his 
peers  for  just  what  he  is.  Immersed  in  the  enterprise,  each 
has  lost  his  self-consciousness  and  is  himself.  And  in  such 
a  situation  discoveries  are  made — discoveries  of  persons 
whom  one  would  add  to  his  list  of  friends. 

Looking  for  a  moment  at  the  varied  activities  of  this 
group,  one  discovers  that  in  worship,  where  the  loftiest 
sentiments  are  expressed,  those  who  are  gathered  to  wor- 
ship are  mingled  in  a  solidarity  of  emotion,  tending  to 
display  the  hidden,  less  public  feelings  and  aspirations. 
These  inner  meanings,  about  which  we  do  not  talk  in  our 
youth  even  to  our  closest  friends,  are  revealed  for  the 
time;  and  one  finds  that  one  here,  another  there,  is  ani- 
mated by  the  high  resolve  that  possesses  him.  Hearts  are 
bound  together  by  the  strong  tie  of  a  common  emotion  at 
its  best.     Participation  in  the  worship  brings  with  it  fur- 


170  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

ther  display  of  latent  possibilities  for  common  understand- 
ing and  of  common  feeling.  The  social  element  in  wor- 
ship has  its  place  in  this  friendship-forming  period.  We 
are  not  yet  aware  how  deeply  others  feel  and  think,  and 
to  find  our  fellows  kindling  under  the  same  emotional 
touch  makes  us  nearer  in  our  bonds  of  fellow  feeling. 

In  carrying  out  the  program  of  service  we  again  find  the 
young  discovering  each  other  under  the  lofty  inspiration  of 
a  common  but  useful  task.  To  take  a  basket  together  to 
some  poor  family,  to  search  out  some  needy  person  with 
another  as  comrade  in  the  service,  to  work  together  to  give 
happiness  to  a  group  of  aged  men  and  women,  not  only 
gives  the  sense  of  cooperation;  it  discovers  one's  willing- 
ness to  sacrifice  and  the  skill  which  such  endeavors  require. 
For  valued  friendships  grow  out  of  friendly  cooperation 
as  in  no  other  soil. 

But,  because  recreation  and  amusement  form  so  large  part 
of  the  life  of  youth,  these  fields  furnish  abundant  means 
for  the  discovery  of  friends.  The  school  that  neglects  to 
provide  ample  recreational  life  has  not  only  failed  to  fur- 
nish a  needed  element  to  growing  boys  and  girls  but  has 
also  limited  its  opportunity  in  friendship  making;  for  rec- 
reation and  fun  the  young  will  have,  and  would  as  soon 
have  them  under  the  wise  guidance  of  the  church  as  to 
seek  them  in  unwholesome  surroundings.  The  outings, 
hikes,  camp  fires,  picnics,  marshmallow  roasts,  and  the 
like  furnish  not  alone  opportunities  for  individual  charac- 
ter development;  they  are  the  ground  of  real  social  sol- 
idarity. 

4.  The  need  for  ideals  of  friendship.  Thus  far  has 
been  indicated  the  need  of  abundance  of  friendship-making 
opportunities  and  the  necessity  of  a  purposeful  program  in 
all  attempts  to  get  the  young  together.  Other  things  enter 
into  a  practical  program  for  the  guidance  of  friendships 
among  the  young.  Ideals  of  what  constitute  a  good  friend 
must  be  gained.  Friendships  do  not  grow  out  of  abstract 
ideals,  but  they  must  stand  the  test  of  our  ideals.     Right 


IN  QUEST  OF  FRIENDS  171 

ideals  of  what  true  friends  are  are  gained  in  two  ways:  first, 
through  lesson  material,  and,  secondly,  through  associa- 
tion with  an  ideal  friend.  The  teacher  or  the  leader  has 
here  his  greatest  opportunity. 

How  vividly  it  all  comes  back  to  the  writer — that  class 
of  six  boys  just  at  the  age  when,  more  than  any  lesson 
material,  more  than  any  sermon  or  advice,  they  needed  a 
friend!  They  were  not  bad  boys — indeed,  they  had  the 
background  of  home  experience  and  life  to  make  them 
unusually  good  boys.  But,  like  a  ship  without  rudder,  they 
were  drifting  in  their  moral  and  religious  lives  for  want 
of  a  friend  to  guide.  One  after  another  the  teachers  came, 
and  one  after  another  they  departed,  glad  to  be  rid  of  the 
task  of  teaching  "those  boys."  Sometimes  the  word  "aw- 
ful" indicated  better  the  teachers'  feelings. 

Then  came  the  day  when  a  true  friend  was  found.  He 
was  strong,  well-knit,  athletic,  and  forceful,  a  leader  in 
whatever  group  he  might  be  found.  And  how  he  did  love 
those  boys!  And  how  they  learned  to  love  him!  For  two 
years  or  more  his  thoughts  were  theirs,  his  standards 
theirs,  his  friendship  their  model.  Here  was  friendship  in 
the  concrete,  and  no  unworthy  friendship.  It  was  a  tie 
that  made  sacrifice  and  service  pleasant.  In  his  home,  on 
the  hike,  in  the  camp,  in  the  gymnasium,  he  lived  with 
and  for  these  boys.  They  idolized  him.  He  was  their  hero, 
their  guide  in  all  that  was  worth  while.  Friendship  meant 
for  them  the  kind  of  friendship  that  he  had  for  them  and 
the  kind  they  felt  for  him.  In  all  their  after  life  it  is  to  be 
doubted  if  they  can  ever  get  away  from  the  standards  of 
friendship  then  established. 

5.  Friendship  in  three  directions.  For  one  must 
ever  remember  that  friendship  in  the  teen  years  reaches 
out  in  three  directions.  In  one  direction  it  seeks  friends 
among  those  of  its  own  years  and  sex;  in  another  direction 
it  seeks  friends  of  those  of  or  about  its  own  age  and  the 
opposite  sex,  this  tendency  increasing  during  adolescence; 
in  the  third  direction  the  friendship-making  sense  reaches 


172  LEADERS    OF   YOUTH 

out  for  someone  of  older  years  and  of  either  sex  who  shall 
help  interpret  life  to  the  inexperienced. 

Now,  it  has  been  conceded  by  all  workers  with  the  young 
that  one  of  the  best  protectors  of  youth,  one  of  the  best 
shapers  of  youth's  morals  and  ideals,  is  to  be  found  in  the 
friendship  established  between  those  of  immature  years  and 
those  who  are  matured.  This  is  the  secret  of  the  "Big 
Brother"  movement  for  the  reclamation  of  youthful  offen- 
ders. If  so  much  can  be  done  for  those  whose  lives  have 
become  misshapen  through  bad  environment  and  bad  com- 
panionships, what  may  not  be  accomplished  through,  the 
fruitful  friendship  that  may  exist  between  teacher  and  pu- 
pils? For,  as  one  has  already  written,  what  we  give  our 
pupils  is  just  ourselves.  If  in  that  giving  we  furnish  in  our- 
selves the  warm  appreciation  and  sympathy  so  much  craved, 
the  strength  of  character  and  initiative  desired,  we  have 
helped  to  standardize  the  thinking  of  our  pupils  and  have 
thus  enabled  them  the  better  to  judge  of  all  those  friend- 
ships which  propinquity  may  create. 

In  an  abstract  way  the  lesson  materials  of  the  graded 
courses  for  intermediates  and  seniors  furnish  also  certain 
guiding  principles  as  they  help  create  right  ideals  of  con- 
duct and  of  social  relations.  How  this  is  done  will  be 
revealed  as  we  discuss  the  lesson  material  suitable  for 
those  years.  It  is  essential  here  to  note  that  all  such 
abstract  and  more  or  less  bookish  idealization  must  find 
exemplification  and  reality  in  the  lives  of  those  whom  the 
young  know  best — the  parents  and  the  teachers  and  the 
leaders  of  the  department. 

6.  Summary.  These,  then,  are  the  directions  that  may 
be  followed  by  any  who  would  render  service  to  the  young 
in  their  friendship-making  attempts.  With  fair  accuracy 
one  may  predict  that,  given  an  abundance  of  really  admir- 
able persons  from  among  whom  youth  may  choose  their 
friends,  the  tendency  will  be  to  seek  those  who  supply  their 
own  greatest  needs;  that  in  the  absence  of  a  sufficient 
number   the   choice   must   invariably   fall   upon   those  less 


IN  QUEST  OF  FRIENDS  173 

worthy;  that,  directed  by  right  ideals,  learned  from  the 
lives  of  the  great  and  more  especially  concreted  in  the 
lives  of  parents  or  leaders,  friendships  are  unconsciously 
tested,  and  those  found  wanting  relegated  to  the  place  of 
acquaintanceship  or  neglect,  while  those  more  desirable  are 
cemented  by  common  interests;  and  that  friendships  are 
best  discovered  and  best  developed  through  the  agency  of 
common  tasks,  common  amusements,  and  common  achieve- 
ments. These  departments  should  then  become  veritable 
schools  of  friendship  both  as  to  ideals  and  as  to  practice. 

Questions 

1.  How  do  chums  and  gangs  indicate  a  hunger  for  friend- 
ship? 

2.  How  does  timidity  limit  the  possibility  of  friendship? 

3.  Why  is  a  large  range  of  acquaintances  from  which  to 
make  friends  desirable? 

4.  Does  the  high-school  student  or  the  pupil  who  has 
gone  to  work  have  the  better  chance  to  make  desirable 
friends?    Give  reasons  for  your  answers. 

5.  What  departmental  activities  help  to  create  right  ideals 
and  possibilities  of  friendship? 

Observation 

1.  What  evidences  have  you  that  the  youHg  are  hungry 
for  friends?  If  you  have  no  data  at  hand,  watch  them  and 
secure  such  data. 

2.  In  your  own  youth  how  did  the  following  help  in  your 
choice  of  friends?  Your  home  and  parents;  your  high 
school;  your  church  and  Sunday  school;  your  business  life; 
your  neighborhood. 


CHAPTER  XVII 
THE  LURE  OF  BOOKS 

For  the  last  quarter  of  a  century  a  well-defined  reading 
craze,  extending  from  about  twelve  to  sixteen  years  of  age, 
has  been  recognized.  So  far  as  our  American  boys  and 
girls  are  concerned,  one  may  expect  to  find  these  years 
not  only  filled  with  deeds  or  with  self-manufactured  dreams 
but  enriched  by  much  and  varied  reading.  Even  the  com- 
ing of  the  "movie"  has  not  done  away  with  the  lure  of  the 
printed  page,  as  is  witnessed  both  by  the  reports  of  public 
libraries  and  by  the  book  market  in  general. 

This  manifestation  of  interest  in  books  is  only  a  part  of 
the  new  life  that  seeks  to  find  solutions  for  everything  in 
the  lives  of  others,  real  or  fictitious;  and  in  the  craving, 
now  become  a  passion,  to  live — even,  if  need  be,  vicariously 
— the  fullest,  most  fascinating,  most  heroic,  and  most 
thrilling  of  existences.  The  realities  of  life  becoming 
meager  and  humdrum,  resort  is  made  to  the  world  of 
fiction  to  supplement  and  color  the  monotony  of  everyday 
experience.  And  the  craving  to  know  how  and  to  know 
what  seeks  satisfaction  in  such  books  as  shall  tell  how  to  do 
and  how  to  know.  What  has  been  sought  from  others 
older  and  more  experienced  is  now  discovered  for  oneself, 
condensed  and  made  usable,  on  the  printed  page. 

1.  The  chance  to  read.  Children  differ  greatly  in  the 
manifestation  of  this  passion.  Access  to  reading  tends  to 
awaken  as  well  as  to  stimulate  reading.  Those  who  live  in 
a  home  where  books  abound,  and  in  which  books  are  a 
part  of  family  life,  are  in  general  more  apt  to  take  to 
reading  and  to  much  reading.  The  public  library,  with  its 
rich  suggestiveness  of  possible  regions  yet  unexplored  and 
its  sympathetic  guide  in  the  person  of  the  children's  libra- 
rian, induces  early  and  extensive  familiarity  with  books. 

174 


THE  LURE  OF  BOOKS  175 

On  the  other  hand,  the  absence  of  books  does  not  preclude 
the  rise  and  development  of  this  interest;  and  where  books 
are  denied  or  are  few  in  number,  the  thirst  is  quenched 
surreptitiously  or  is  partially  assuaged  .by  repeated  reading 
of  the  few  and  often  ill-assorted  store  of  books  at  hand.  No 
one  familiar  with  the  poverty  in  reading  matter  of  many 
a  country  or  city  home  can  fail  to  be  struck  with  the  zeal 
with  which  the  newspapers,  the  almanacs,  the  few  books 
and  magazines,  are  read  and  reread  by  youthful  members 
of  the  family.  How  much  greater  would  be  the  reading 
range  and  how  much  more  advantageous  the  reading  hours 
were  there  an  abundance  of  good  literature,  no  one  can 
tell! 

2.  Kinds  of  reading  for  intermediates  and  seniors. 
If  one  would  seek  to  know  the  kinds  of  reading  sought  by 
those  of  the  years  herein  considered  one  has  only  to  make 
some  searching  investigation  among  the  pupils  of  one's 
own  department.  One  such  investigator  has  found  that 
"95  per  cent  of  the  boys  prefer  adventure,"  and  that  "75 
per  cent  of  the  girls  prefer  love  stories."  Another  found 
that  fiction  interest  is  at  its  highest  for  both  boys  and 
girls  at  eleven,  while  "at  thirteen  the  record  for  travel  and 
adventure  stands  highest — in  the  case  of  boys  phenomenally 
so."  "There  is  a  gradual  rise  in  history  with  age,"  says  the 
same  writer,  "and  a  corresponding  decline  in  fiction." 
"Boys  read  twice  as  much  history  and  travel  as  girls  and 
only  about  two  thirds  as  much  poetry  and  stories,"  says 
another  investigator.  Still  another  found  from  the  records 
of  a  public  library  that  at  about  sixteen  a  change  took 
place  in  both  sexes, 

showing  then  the  beginning  of  a  greater  interest  in  works 
of  more  general  character  (than  juvenile  stories).  Girls 
read  more  fiction  than  boys  at  every  age,  but  the  interest 
in  it  begins  to  be  very  decided  at  adolescence.^ 

The  order  in  which  appeal  is  made  to  the  young  likely 
stands  about  as  follows:   stories  and  longer  fiction,  travel 

1  See  Adolescence,  Hall,  Volume  II,  pages  474-80,  and  footnotes. 


176  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

and  adventure,  how-to-do  books,  books  about  various  forms 
of  animate  and  inanimate  objects,  history,  biography.  Both 
history  and  biography  for  the  younger  pupils  must  be 
dressed  in  semifictipnal  form.  In  fact,  history  as  dry  fact 
never  exists  for  the  young;  and  the  sooner  historians  dis- 
cover this,  the  more  will  the  rising  generation  know  of  the 
great  movements  and  persons  that  have  transformed  human 
life.  Even  science  is  more  palatable  and  more  digestible 
for  being  written  in  the  form  of  lively  narrative.  The 
great  debt  of  the  present  generation  is  to  those  under- 
standing writers  for  youth  who  have  made  facts  more 
interesting  than  fiction  and  fiction  tame  beside  the  marvels 
of  nature's  facts. 

In  truth,  one  needs  to  recognize  how  wide  is  the  area 
covered  by  so-called  books  for  the  young,  and  how  eagerly 
youths  seek  between  the  covers  of  books  to  learn  what  life, 
human,  animal,  and  vegetable,  is  like.  One  needs  to  know  how 
large  is  the  manufacture  and  the  circulation  of  tales  of  ad- 
venture, of  travel  and  of  romance,  read  largely  by  those 
under  twenty.  Until  this  is  accomplished,  the  leader  of 
youth  is  apt  to  underestimate  the  power  of  the  printed  page 
in  directing  the  thinking  and  the  feelings  and,  hence,  the 
conduct  of  our  boys  and  girls. 

3.  The  history  of  juvenile  reading.  If  the  history  of 
the  guidance  of  youth  in  his  reading  could  be  written, 
applying  particularly  to  our  American  youth,  it  would  be 
filled  with  pathos,  tragedy,  and  humor.  For  many  years, 
so  strong  was  the  Puritanical  tradition  upon  us,  books  of 
stories  were  denied  the  young  altogether,  notwithstanding 
the  fact  that  children  learn  most  rapidly  through  the  story. 
Dickens,  Scott,  and  even  such  innocent  diversions  as  Robin- 
son Crusoe  were  under  the  ban.  Children's  books  were  of 
the  most  sedate  and  theological  type,  with  a  strong  tendency 
toward  religious  sentimentalism.  Passing  from  these 
earlier  restrictions,  one  enters  upon  a  period  of  limited 
license  when  books  were  scanned  most  carefully  lest  un- 
wholesome or  even  immoral  tendencies  should  be  found  in 


THE  LURE  OF  BOOKS  177 

the  narrative.  Under  such  extreme  caution  grew  up  the 
Sunday-school  books  of  other  days,  noteworthy  chiefly  for 
their  inane  heroes  and  their  dull  plots.  If  ever  humanity 
suffered,  it  was  at  the  hands  of  the  well-intentioned  writers 
who  poured  forth  such  drivel  upon  an  innocent  youth. 

It  is  not  surprising  to  find  that,  contemporaneous  with 
these  puerile  effusions,  grew  up  and  circulated,  surrepti- 
tiously, the  paper  novel,  the  "nickul  libury"  of  Irvin 
Cobb's  fine  appreciation  of  the  "dime  novel,"  read  outside 
the  pale  of  family  knowledge  and  sanction.  These  more 
virile  stories  had  at  least  the  merit  of  speedy  plots,  heroic 
notwithstanding  melodramatic  characters  and  constant 
movement.  They  served  to  fill  the  life  of  youth  with  the 
glamour  and  the  daring  sought  more  often  in  fiction  than  in 
actual  life.  While  here  and  there  a  weak  boy  or  girl,  more 
susceptible  to  suggestion  than  the  average,  was  led  astray, 
it  is  doubtful  if  in  many  cases  these  "thrillers"  served  any 
other  purpose  than  timefillers  and  mystery  satisfiers. 

4.  Guidance  needed  to-day.  Then  followed  the  ac- 
knowledged day  of  stories  for  boys  and  girls  and  the  encour- 
agement to  read,  read  widely,  read  all.  To-day  we  are  in 
greater  danger  from  the  multitude  of  books  and  the  lack  of 
mental  guidance  than  ever  before.  Just  as  the  books,  good, 
bad,  and  indifferent,  have  multiplied,  in  like  proportion 
have  parents  and  leaders  of  youth  felt  relieved  of  any 
responsibility  for  the  reading  life  of  the  young.  In  the 
library  and  in  the  home,  in  books,  magazines,  and  news- 
papers, the  young  have  exposed  to  their  gaze  the  good  and 
the  bad,  the  lofty  and  the  vile,  that  which  is  intended  for 
the  eyes  of  the  young  and  that  which  is  written  for  the 
special  guidance  of  those  of  mature  years.  If,  left  to 
themselves,  our  pupils  stumble  upon  the  unworthy,  cheap, 
and  tawdry,  the  salacious,  and  that  which  is  theirs  in  later 
years  but  beyond  their  true  appreciation  and  evaluation  in 
youth,  we  have  none  to  blame  but  ourselves.  For  never 
before  have  suitable  books  been  so  abundant  and  so  inex- 
pensive.   Never  before  has  the  public  tried  more  seriously 


178  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

to  provide  this  reading-crazed  age  with  really  good  and 
interesting  books.  In  every  field  and  for  every  occasion 
there  is  a  book  if  the  boy  or  the  girl  did  but  know. 

All  this  goes  to  prove  that  one  thing  needed  in  the  world 
of  books,  as  in  the  world  of  friends,  is  to  have  a  large 
number  of  possible  worthy  selections  within  easy  reach. 
For  children  who  live  in  the  cities  this  provision  has  been 
well  made  through  the  public  library.  But  for  many  of  our 
boys  and  girls  such  depositories  of  good  reading  do  not 
exist.  It  is  unfortunately  out  of  fashion  to  talk  much 
about  Sunday-school  libraries,  especially  those  attempting 
to  meet  the  needs  of  all  pupils.  And  it  is  too  true  that 
such  ventures  have  in  the  past  suffered  from  parsimony 
and  false  judgment  of  books,  rendering  them  almost 
useless.  Notwithstanding,  unless  the  community,  through 
its  public  school  or  its  library  association  or  its  own 
generous  contribution  to  maintain  a  public  library,  does 
something  for  the  young,  the  Sunday  school  has  a  duty 
to  see  that  books  are  provided.  A  pastor  and  his  super- 
intendent can  do  nothing  to  direct  the  reading  life  of  the 
young  more  adequately  than  to  start  a  library,  however 
humble,  which  from  time  to  time  can  be  augmented,  the 
books  to  be  circulated  week  by  week,  thus  enlarging  the 
outlook  of  the  most  isolated  parish.  Only  one  who  has  had 
occasion  to  lend  his  own  personal  collection  to  hungry 
youth  in  the  country  knows  how  great  is  the  appetite  and 
how  ravenous  the  desire  to  read  a  good  book.  Even  a  class 
can  buy  two  or  three  books  each  year  and  pass  these  about. 
There  is  always  a  way  for  those  who  have  the  will. 

5.  Developing  taste.  But  providing  books  is  not 
enough,  just  as  providing  possible  friends  is  not  sufficient. 
One  cannot  predetermine  tastes  in  reading  but  one  can 
cultivate  tastes  here  as  well  as  in  food.  It  is  not  sufficient 
to  have  good  books  stored  away  in  the  stock  room  of  the 
city  library.  It  is  necessary  that  discoveries  be  aided  by 
those  who  have  traveled  that  way  before.  Hence  it  is  that 
the  teacher  of  intermediates  and  of  seniors  has  a  peculiar 


THE  LURE  OF  BOOKS  179 

privilege  and  duty  in  introducing  his  pupils  ta  worthy 
friends  among  the  books.  This  should  be  done  in  no  aca- 
demic fashion  if  results  are  desired.  One  must  learn  the  al- 
ready established  interests  and  tastes.  Upon  the  awakened 
interests  he  must  proceed  to  awaken  further  interests  and 
upon  the  basis  of  acquired  tastes  he  must  encourage  new  and 
different  tastes.  For  life  is  moving  on,  displacing  the 
tastes  of  to-day  by  the  newly  acquired  appetites  of  to- 
morrow. 

To  tell  a  good  story  and  then  to  show  how  one  can  for 
himself  find  out  more  about  the  hero  or  the  heroes,  to 
begin  a  tale  of  adventure  and  then  to  leave  the  pages  turned, 
so  that  the  curious  may  find  out  "what  comes  next,"  to 
discuss  photography,  stamp  collecting,  carpentry,  cooking, 
basketry,  radio-telegraphy,  or  radio-telephony,  and  then 
hand  to  the  inquiring  mind  the  volume  that  shall  make 
more  plain  what  has  been  told,  is  one  way  of  stimulating 
interest  and  training  taste. 

Substitution  is  another  method.  Here  one  finds  that 
stories  of  a  certain  type,  say  historical  romance,  have 
secured  their  hold,  but  that  the  stories  themselves  are  far 
from  perfect  in  form  and  structure.  Not  discouragement 
but  substitution  is  needed.  For  Henty  substitute  Scott. 
For  the  "nickul  libury"  sustitute  Stevenson's  Treasure 
Island  and  Captain  Kicld.  For  romantic  tales  of  adventure 
substitute  real  tales  of  travel — Stanley's  Darkest  Africa, 
Nansen's  Farthest  North,  Du  Chaillu's  Land  of  the  Mid- 
night Sun,  Roosevelt's  River  of  Doubt.  If  one  must  have 
romanticism  and  love,  let  it  be  in  the  best  form  and  freed 
from  any  salacious  suggestion;  and  love  tales  we  must  all 
have  in  our  youth  and  in  great  abundance.  If  adventure 
and  travel  form  our  chief  craving,  let  us  have  authentic 
books  of  adventure,  full  of  the  realities  of  life. 

6.  Sets  of  books  for  boys  and  girls.  One  type  of 
books  that  has  been  passed  by  in  silence  is  found  in  those 
series  for  boys  and  for  girls  known  by  various  names,  such 
as  the  "Rover  Books,"  the  "Scout  Books,"  the  "Pioneers," 


180  LEADERS    OF   YOUTH 

and  the  like.  These  in  large  part  are  harmless  in  content, 
fairly  rapid  in  movement,  and  simple  in  diction.  Their 
interest,  since  the  days  of  Horatio  Alger  and  Oliver  Optic 
down  to  the  present  time,  has  been  determined  by  the  ease 
in  reading,  their  cheapness  as  to  cost,  and  their  depiction 
of  graphic  scenes  that  pass  easily  from  one  to  the  other 
without  much  pause  or  connection.  The  universal  con- 
demnation into  which  such  literature  has  fallen  is  due  not 
to  any  particular  evil  active  or  latent  in  the  stories  but 
to  their  inane  and  altogether  characterless  narrative.  At 
best  they  are  stop-gaps  in  the  reading  life  of  the  young. 
Why  not  stop  these  gaps  with  something  really  worth  one's 
time?  At  best  they  are  to  be  tolerated  only  in  the  hope  that 
they  will  awaken  the  reading  interest  to  a  point  where 
something  really  good  will  be  demanded.  Their  greatest 
evil  is  that  they  sometimes  so  completely  fill  the  time  and 
thought  that  more  serious  and  valuable  reading  is  alto- 
gether left  out. 

7.  Lists  of  books.  Some  of  the  good  books  that  have 
proved  their  worth  by  long  experience  or  by  the  careful 
judgment  of  those  in  a  position  to  know  what  is  worth 
while  are  found  below.    Here  we  pass  from  theory  to  fact. 

Stories 

Alcott,  Louise  May:  Little  Women;  An  Old-Fashioned 
Girl;  Under  the  Lilacs;  Eight  Cousins;  Little  Men. 

Barbour,  R.  H.:  For  the  Honor  of  the  School;  Captain  of 
the  Crew;  The  Halfback. 

Bennett,  John:  Master  Skylark. 

Blackmore,  R.  D.:   Lorna  Doone. 

Bosher,  Kate  Langley:  Mary  Cary ;  His  Friend. 

Brooks,  E.  S.:  Master  of  the  Strong  Heart. 

Burnett,  Mrs.  F.  H.:  Little  Lord  Fauntleroy;  The  Secret 
Garden;  Sarah  Crewe. 

Clemens,  S.  L.:  Adventures  of  Tom  Sawyer;  Adventures 
of  Huckleberry  Finn;  The  Prince  and  the  Pauper;  Personal 
Recollections  of  Joan  of  Arc;  Innocents  Abroad. 

Coffin,  C.  C:  Witining  His  Way. 

Cooper,  J.  F.:  The  Deerslayer;  The  Last  of  the  Mohicans; 
The  Pathfinder;  The  Pioneers;  The  Prairie;  The  Spy. 


THE  LURE  OF  BOOKS  181 

Craddock,  C.  E.:  TJie  Prophet  of  the  Great  Smoky  Moun- 
tains. 

Crane,  Stephen:   The  Red  Badge  of  Courage. 

Defoe,  Daniel:  Robinson  Crusoe. 

Deland,  Margaret:  Old  Chester  Tales;  Dr.  Lavendar's 
People. 

Dickens,  Charles:  David  Copperfield;  A  Christmas  Carol; 
A  Tale  of  Two  Cities;  Dombey  and  Son. 

Duncan,  Norman:  Dr.  Luke  of  the  Labrador;  Adventures 
of  Billy  Topsail  d  Co. 

Eggleston,  E.:  The  Hoosier  Schoolboy;  The  Hoosier 
Schoolmaster. 

Eliot,  George:  Silas  Marner. 

Fox,  John:  The  Little  Shepherd  of  Kingdom  Come;  The 
Trail  of  the  Lonesome  Pine. 

Garland,  Hamlin:  The  Long  Trail;  A  Son  of  the  Border. 

Grey,  Zane:   The  Young  Pitcher. 

Grenfell,  W,  T.:  Tales  of  the  Labrador;  Adrift  on  an  Ice 
Pan. 

Hale,  E.  E.:   The  Man  Without  a  Country;  In  His  Name, 

Harris,  Joel  Chandler:   Uncle  Remus. 

Hawthorne,  N. :  The  Scarlet  Letter;  Twice-Told  Tales. 

Jackson,  Helen  Hunt:     Ramona;  Nelly's  Silver  Mine. 

Johnstone,  Mary:  To  Have  and  to  Hold. 

Kipling,  Rudyard:      Captains  Courageous;  Kirn.. 

Kingsley,  Charles:  Westward  Ho! 

LaRamee,  L.  De:  A  Dog  of  Flanders;  The  Nilrnberg 
Stove. 

London,  Jack:    The  Gall  of  the  Wild. 

Montgomery,  L.  M.:  Anne  of  Green  Gables;  Anne  of  Avon- 
lea. 

Munroe,  Kirk:  Flamingo  Feather. 

Ollivant,  Alfred:  Bob,  Son  of  Battle. 

Page,  T.  N.:  Red  Rock. 

Porter,  Jane:  Scottish  Chiefs. 

Porter,  Gene  Stratton:  Freckles;  A  Girl  of  the  Limber- 
lost;  Michael  O'Halloran;  The  Harvester. 

Pyle,  Howard:  Men  of  Iron;  The  Story  of  Jack  Ballis- 
ter's  Fortune. 

Rice,  Alice  Hegan:  Mrs.  Wiggs  of  the  Cabbage  Patch; 
Lovey  Mary;  Sandy. 

Scott,  Sir  Walter:  Ivanhoe;  Kenilioorth;  Quentin  Dur- 
ward;  The  Talisman. 

Smith,  F.  H.:  Caleb  West;  Master  Diver;  The  Fortunes 
of  Oliver  Horn;  Peter;  Tom  Grogan. 

Slosson,  Annie  Trumbull:  Story-Tell  Lib;  Fishin'  Jimmy. 


182  LEADERS    OP    YOUTH 

Stevenson,  R.  L.:  Kidnapped;  David  Balfour;  The  Mas- 
ter of  Ballantrae ;  Treasure  Island. 

Stockton,  Francis  R. :  Rudder  Grange. 

Stowe,  Harriet  Beecher:  Uncle  Tom's  Cabin. 

Tarkington,  Booth:  The  Gentleman  From  Indiana. 

Thompson,  D.  P.:  The  Green  Mountain  Boys. 

Van  Dyke,  Henry:   The  Blue  Flower. 

Vaile,  Mrs.  C.  M.:  The  Orcutt  Girls;  Sue  Orcutt. 

Verne,  J.:  Around  the  World  in  Eighty  Days;  Twenty 
Thousand  Leagues  Under  the  Sea. 

Wallace,  Lou:  Ben-Hur. 

Watson,  John:  Beside  the  Bonnie  Brier  Bush. 

Webster,  Jean:  Daddy  Long  Legs. 

White,  S.  E.:  Blazed  Trail;  River  Man. 

Wiggins,  Mrs.  Kate  D.:  Rebecca  of  Sunnybrook  Farm; 
Holly  Oliver's  Problem;  The  Birds'  Christmas  Carol;  A. 
Bummer  in  a  Canon. 

Wister,  Owen:   The  Virginian. 

Wright,  Harold  B.:   The  Shepherd  of  the  Hills. 

Zollonger,  G. :   Widoio  O'Callaghan's  Boys. 

Biography 

Antin,  Mary:   The  Promised  Land. 

Bacon,  E.  M.:   The, Boy's  Drake. 

Baldwin,  James:  American  Book  of  Golden  Deeds. 

Brooks,  E.  S.:  The  True  Story  of  George  Washington. 

Custer,  Mrs.  E.  B.:  Boots  and  Saddle  (life  of  Custer). 

Franklin,  B.:  Autobiography. 

Golding,  Vautier:  The  Story  of  Henry  M.  Stanley;  Martin 
of  Mansfield. 

Hill,  F.  T.:  On  the  Trail  of  Grant  and  Lee. 

Jones,  F.  A.:  Thomas  Edison. 

Keller,  Helen:   The  Story  of  My  Life. 

Mathews,  Basil:    Paul,  the  Dauntless. 

Moffett,  Cleveland:    Careers  of  Danger  and  Daring. 

Morgan,  James:  Theodore  Roosevelt,  the  Boy  and  the 
Man. 

Moses,  Belle:  Louisa  M.  Alcott. 

Muir,  J.:  The  Story  of  My  Boyhood  and  Youth. 

Nicolay,  Helen:  The  Boy's  Life  of  Abraham  Lincoln. 

Palmer,  G.  H. :  The  Life  of  Alice  Freeman  Palmer. 

Baton,  John  T. :   The  Missionary  to  the  New  Hebrides. 

Riis,  Jacob:   The  Making  of  an  American. 

Roosevelt,  T.:  Letters  to  His  Children. 

Washington,  B.:  Up  From  Slavery;  The  Life  of  Freder- 
ick Douglass. 


THE  LURE  OP  BOOKS  183 

Wheeler,  H.  P.  B. :    The  Boy's  Life  of  Lord  Kitchener. 
Yonge,  C.  M.:  Book  of  Golden  Deeds. 

Travel  and  Adventure 

Chaillu,  Paul  du:    The  Land  of  the  Midnight  Sun, 
Dana,  R.  H.:   Two  Years  Before  the  Mast. 
Pranck:   Vagabond  Journeys  Afoot. 
Kephart,  H. :  Castaways  and  Crusoes. 
Roosevelt,  T. :  African  Game  Trails. 
Stanley,  H.:  Through  Darkest  Africa. 
Williams,  Archibald:    The  Romance  of  Modern  Explora- 
tion. 

Nature  Lore 

Earth  and  Sky  Every  Child  Should  Know,  Julia  E. 
Rogers. 

Trees,  Stars,  and  Birds,  Mosley. 

How  to  Know  the  Wild  Flowers,  Dana. 

Familiar  Flowers  of  Field  and  Garden,  Mathews. 

How  to  Know  the  Ferns,  Dana. 

HoiD  to  Knotv  the  Mosses,  Dunham. 

How  to  Know  the  Trees,  H.  Irving. 

Birds  Every  Child  Should  Knoiv,  Vlanchan. 

Behind  the  Scenes  With  Wild  Animals,  Velvin. 

Secrets  of  the  Woods,  W.  J.  Long. 

Moths  and  Butterflies,  Dickerson. 

Insect  Stories,  V.  L.  Kellogg. 

How  to  Know  the  Stars,  W.  W.  Rupert. 

Half  Hours  With  the  Lower  Animals,  C.  P.  Holder. 

Minerals  and  How  to  Study  Them,  Dana. 

Handicraft 

Basket  Weaving  ("How  to  Do  It"  series). 

The  Priscilla  Basketry  Book,  Fitzgerald. 

How  to  Do  Beadwork,  White. 

Artistic  and  Decorative  Stenciling,  Audsley. 

Elementary  Woodivork,  Kilbon. 

Woodcarving  for  Young  People,  Leland. 

Box  Furniture,  Louise  Brigham. 

The  Potter's  Craft,  C.  P.  Binns. 

Practical  Compendium  of  Pen  Lettering  and  Designing 
(Newtown  Automatic  Shading  Pen  Co.). 

The  Craft  of  Handmade  Rugs.  Amy  Mali  Hicks. 

Elementary  Bookmaking  and  Bookbinding,  Sarah  G. 
Preeman. 

First  Book  of  Photography,  C.  H.  Claudy. 


184  LEADERS    OF   YOUTH 


Practical  Cinematograpliy,  and  Its  Ax>vlication,  F.  A.  Tal- 
bot. 

Boat  Building  and  Boating,  D.  C.  Beard. 

Shelters,  Shacks,  and  Shanties,  D.  C.  Beard. 

Wireless  Man,  F.  A.  Collins. 

Airman,  F.  A.  Collins. 

Harper's  Aircraft  Book,  A,  H.  Verrill. 

Book  of  Wireless,  F.  A.  Collins. 

Appreciation  Books 

Hoiv  to  Understand  Music,  W.  Mathews. 
Stories  From  the  Operas,  Davidson. 
Stories  of  Hymns  and  Tunes,  Brown-Butterworth. 
A  Child's  Guide  to  Pictures,  C.  H.  CliafRn. 
Hoiv  to  Pi'oduce  Amateur  Plays,  Barrett-Clark. 
Plays  of  the  Pioneers,  MacKaye. 

General  Books 

Manuals  of  the  Scouts  (both  Boy  and  Girl),  Camp  Fire 
Girls,  and  Girl  Pioneers  will  be  found  of  great  aid.    Also 

Woodcraft  3Ianiial  for  Girls;  Handbook  for  Girl  Scouts, 
etc. 

Questions 

1.  What  kind  of  books  besides  fiction  do  pupils  of  these 
departments  like? 

2.  Why  should  many  good  books  be  accessible  to  the 
young? 

3.  How  may  interest  in  a  book  be  created? 

4.  What  harm  is  there  in  innocent  but  cheap  reading? 

5.  Name  five  good  stories  and  five  books  not  fiction 
which  you  could  recommend  to  a  fourteen-year-old  boy;  to 
a  fourteen-year-old  girl. 

Observation 

Get  five  or  six  boys  each  to  give  you  a  list  of  ten  books 
that  they  especially  like.  This  will  enlarge  your  knowledge 
of  the  reading  interests  of  your  pupils  and  will  furnish 
you  an  excellent  opportunity  to  talk  over  the  reading  inter- 
ests with  the  young. 


PART  III 
INSTRUCTING    THE    INTERMEDIATE-SENIOR 


CHAPTER  XVIII 
LESSON  MATERIALS  FOR  INTERMEDIATES 

1.  HoxjT  lesson  material  is  chosen.  The  choice  of  les- 
son material  for  any  department  is  no  longer  the  result 
of  arbitrary  decree  but  the  product  of  careful  investiga- 
tion of  the  capacities  and  the  interests  of  the  pupils,  and  of 
the  end  sought  by  the  teacher.  Whatever  the  end  sought, 
the  material  must  meet  the  requirements  of  fitting  the  in- 
tellectual development  and  satisfying  the  interests  of  those 
taught.  The  end  will  determine  whether  the  matter  fall 
within  the  realm  of  nature  study,  mathematics,  history, 
science,  religion,  or  what  not. 

The  end  in  the  present  case  is  obviously  the  moral  and 
religious  growth  of  the  pupils.  This  determines  somewhat 
the  content  of  the  course  of  study.  What  shall  be  selected 
to  gain  that  end — whether  history,  geography,  mythology, 
science,  art,  or  fictional  stories — will  depend  on  how  far 
each  may  enter  into  the  pupil's  interests  and  draw  out  his 
awakening  sense  of  religious  life  and  worth.  Inasmuch  as 
the  English  Bible,  both  in  content  and  in  phraseology,  is 
the  sourcebook  of  our  Anglo-Saxon  religious  experience,  it 
is  a  foregone  conclusion  that  within  its  covers  one  shall 
find  much  that  is  best  fitted  to  aid  the  adolescent  in  under- 
standing his  own  religious  nature  and  in  helping  him  find 
his  place  in  a  world  that  should  be  thoroughly  Christian. 

2.  The  graded  lessons  for  intermediates.  The  present 
International  Graded  Lessons  are  the  result  of  just  such 
painstaking  study  of  the  life  and  needs  of  these  pupils,  and 
the  content  and  method  of  presentation  of  the  lessons  are 
built  upon  sound  and  tried  principles  of  religious  teaching. 
A  glance  at  the  accompanying  chart  will  furnish  a  rapid 
survey  of  the  attempt  to  meet  the  needs  of  each  age. 

187 


188 


LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 


ORGANIZATION  CHART 

AGE 

COURSE 

TITLES  OF  COURSES 

DtpirtiMtol  Cro«p. 

Sdiooi 
Glide* 

PUfll 

PUa2 

4 
5 

BEGIN. 
MERS 

The  Little  Child  and  the  Heavenly  Father 
(A  Two  Year  Course  for  chUdren  of  Kindergarten  age.) 

BEGIN- 
NERS 

BEGIN- 
NERS 

KINDER. 
GARTEN 

is 

!! 

t 
? 

c 

I 

8 

L 
C 

2 
\ 

E. 

6 

I 

Bible  Stories  for  the  Sunday  School  and  Home-Year  x 

PRI- 
MARY 

PRI- 
MARY 

7 

n 

Bible  Stories  for  the  Sunday  School  and  Home- Year  2 

8 

m 

Bible  Stories  for  the  Sunday  School  and  Home-Ye«r  3 

9 

IV 

Stories  from  the  Olden  Time  ^"^'="^%f[?^,f)  ^       " 

JUNIOR 

JUNIOR 

10 

V 

Hero  Stories  (including  Special  Summer  Material) 

n 

VI 

Kingdom  Stories  (including  Special  Summer  Material) 

12 

vn 

Gospel  stories  (including  Special  Summer  Material) 

INTES- 
MEDUTE 

13 

vm 

Leaders  of  Israel  fmcluding  Special  Summer  Material) 

INTCR- 
MEDUTt 

14 

IX 

Christian  Leaders  (including  Special  Summer  Material) 

15 

X 

The  Life  of  Christ  (including  Special  Summer  Material) 

SENIOR 

i6 

XI 

Christian  Living  (including  Special  Summer  Material) 

17 

xn 

The  World  a  Field  for  Christian  Service 

SENIOR 

i8 

xm 

The  History  and  Literature  of  the  Hebrew  People 

YOUNG 
PEOPLE 

TO 

24 
YEARS 

12. 

20 

XIV 

The  History  of  New  Testament  Times 

XV 

The  Bible  and  Social  Living 

Special  Courses  for  Parents  and  Elective  Courses 
on  Special  Topics 

ADULT 

THE  COURSES  BEGIN  WITH  OCTOBER 

NOTE 

Plan  1 :  When  the  Graded  Lessons  were  first  issued  the 
yearly  courses  were  grouped  to  correspond  to  this  well-known 
classification  of  pupils,  and  the  text  books  were  marked  in 
accordance  with  this  plan. 

Plan  2 :  The  departmental  grouping  by  a  series  of  three 
years  to  a  department  corresponds  to  the  school  grading  where 
Junior  High  Schools  have  been  organized  and  is  now  recom- 
mended by  many  denominations.  Where  Sunday  schools  are 
organized  by  this  plan  care  must  be  taken  to  select  the  Graded 
C<jurse  by  age  and  titles,  as  indicated  in  the  left  column, 
rather  than  by  department  names. 

Copyright,  191S,  by  N.  S.  Barnes. 


LESSON  MATERIALS  FOR  INTERMEDIATES     183 

Such  a  chart  assumes,  of  course,  that  pupils  are  graded — 
that  is,  that  all  those  of  approximately  the  same  age  and, 
therefore,  of  relatively  the  same  ability  and  capacities  are 
in  the  same  classes.  Such  grouping  is  for  the  apparent 
reason  that  it  is  much  easier  to  hold  attention  and  to  gain 
interest  if  one's  group  is  of  about  the  same  ability.  One 
outstanding  difficulty  in  the  Intermediate-Senior  Depart- 
ment is  that  pupils  of  a  wide  range  of  age,  because  of  social 
cohesion,  gather  into  one  class,  making  teaching  well-nigh 
impossible.  The  fault  in  such  a  case  lies  not  with  the  les- 
sons, nor  yet  with  the  teacher,  but  with  the  stubborn  fact 
of  ill  assortment  of  pupils.  How  to  remedy  such  difficulties 
has  been  considered  in  Chapter  IX. 

Children  who  have  passed  up  through  the  earlier  grades 
come  to  the  Intermediate  Department  with  a  certain  stock 
of  knowledge  and  with  certain  ideals  fairly  well  fixed. 
They  have,  as  will  be  seen  from  the  chart,  heard  Bible 
and  nature  stories.  In  the  junior  grade  just  preceding 
this  they  have  been  studying  the  stories  of  the  days  of  the 
patriarchs  and  of  the  heroes  of  Israel.  They  are  also 
fairly  well  versed  in  the  chief  stories  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment, especially  of  the  Hero  of  heroes  and  of  his  fol- 
lowers. Memory  work  has  laid  up  in  their  minds  many 
choice  Scripture  passages,  and  geography  and  illustra- 
tive study  have  given  them  some  knowledge  of  the  cus- 
toms of  these  olden  days. 

3.  Liessons  for  those  twelve  years  old.  Looking  for  a 
moment  at  the  two  plans.  Plan  1  and  Plan  2,  it  will  be 
noted  that  in  the  first  plan  the  twelfth  year  falls  in  the 
fourth-year  junior,  while  according  to  the  second  plan  it 
becomes  the  first-year  intermediate.  This  twelfth  year, 
as  we  have  already  discovered,  is  the  year  of  transition 
from  childhood  to  youth  and  is  for  that  very  reason  difficult 
to  classify.  As  this  book  is  written  from  the  viewpoint  of 
the  second  plan,  it  will  be  necessary  to  consider  briefiy 
the  lesson  material  for  those  twelve  years  of  age. 

These  lessons  differ  radically  from  what  just  precedes. 


190  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

First  of  all  come  twenty-five  lessons  on  the  life  of  Jesus, 
using  the  Gospel  of  Mark  as  guide.  This  is  the  Gospel  of 
action  and  is  therefore  specially  fitted  to  the  needs  of  these 
pupils.  Furthermore,  this  is  the  age  when  a  more  intimate 
knowledge  of  the  great  Friend  of  all  mankind  is  needed, 
particularly  such  knowledge  as  shows  him  at  work  as  the 
Friend  of  man.  These  lessons  mark  the  transition  from 
narrative  to  more  serious  study  methods,  now  familiar  to 
the  pupils  through  their  school  experience.  Notebooks  and 
handwork  of  a  more  highly  developed  nature  are  employed. 

As  these  are  the  dawning  years  of  social  enlargement, 
of  desire  to  become  members  of  the  religious  organization 
and  to  take  upon  oneself  the  responsibilities  of  Christian 
living,  and  of  possible  awakening  to  some  of  the  deeper 
meanings  of  the  inner  life,  it  is  altogether  desirable  that 
the  pupils  should  be  brought  into  immediate  contact  with 
the  matchless  Life,  that  the  motives  of  social  fellowship,  of 
service  toward  man,  and  of  an  open-heartedness  toward 
God  should  be  stimulated  by  Mark's  vivid  sketches  of 
Jesus.  Before  passing  on  to  more  careful  biographical 
studies  these  stories  pave  the  way  to  an  appreciation  of 
the  heroic  in  conduct  and  to  right  motives  leading  thereto. 

Following  the  lessons  on  the  Gospel  of  Mark  come  eight 
lessons  on  service,  their  form  being  that  of  missionary 
stories,  but  their  emphasis  being  on  the  place  and  the  need 
of  service,  with  abundance  of  illustration  of  what  such  serv- 
ice has  accomplished. 

Five  studies  on  "How  Our  Bible  Came  to  Us"  succeed  the 
missionary  tales,  conveying  briefly  but  comprehensively  the 
interesting  story  of  our  own  book  of  religion.  The  pur- 
pose is  to  deepen  the  already  wakened  interest  in  this 
great  book. 

Further  Gospel  stories,  twelve  in  number,  complete  the 
year's  work,  these  being  chosen  tales  of  the  apostolic 
church,  as  found  in  the  Acts. 

Thus,  in  this  transition  year,  the  pupil  is  brought  face 
to  face  with  the  Gospel  stories  of  the  Master's  life,  that  he 


LESSON  MATERIALS  FOR  INTERMEDIATES     131 

may  appreciate  more  fully  this  Friend  and  may  find  Jesus 
both  an  example  and  a  Saviour;  he  is  confronted  with  the 
fine  heroism  that  has  led  men  in  all  ages  to  give  freely 
their  services  in  the  cause  of  spreading  the  gospel  story, 
and  he  is  led  to  see  how  dearly  the  Bible,  embodying  the 
gospel  story,  has  been  preserved  and  brought  to  us  to-day. 

4.  Lessons  for  those  thirteen  and  fourteen  years  old. 
Referring  to  the  results  of  study  of  the  reading  interests  of 
children  (see  page  175),  one  discovers  that  the  story  interest 
is  succeeded  by  interest  in  adventure,  travel,  and  biog- 
raphy. Hero  loving  passes  into  hero  analysis.  The  hero 
who  has  been  admired  for  what  he  does  is  now  studied  to 
see  how  he  did  it.  What  made  him  the  hero?  What  caused 
her  to  do  the  great  deed,  the  kindly  act,  or  to  play  the 
martyr's  role? 

It  is  only  natural,  then,  that  the  stories  of  the  Old  and 
New  Testaments  should  be  followed  by  a  series  of  studies 
of  great  characters — characters  whose  lives  have  been  re- 
corded because  they  represent  religion  at  a  high  stage  of 
personal  achievement.  More  or  less  has  already  been  learned 
of  the  deeds  of  these  men  and  women.  A  few  words  or  a  lit- 
tle study  will  soon  recall  their  heroism.  But  now  the  pupil's 
attention  is  turned  to  ask:  What  kind  of  man  was  this  who 
accomplished  such  prodigious  deeds?  What  sort  of  charac- 
ter did  this  woman  possess,  and  how  did  she  come  to  pos- 
sess it?  Herein  is  found  the  key  to  the  two  series  of  les- 
sons for  the  thirteen-  and  the  fourteen-year-old  boys  and 
girls,  entitled  respectively  The  Leaders  of  Israel  and  Chris- 
tian Leaders. 

It  is  well  to  keep  in  mind  that  the  historical  sense  in 
any  definite  form  has  not  yet  arisen.  These  are  not  his- 
torical studies,  and  if  taught  as  such  they  lose  just  the 
suggestiveness  intended.  Neither  are  they  simple  hero 
tales,  such  as  those  the  juniors  have  just  been  considering. 
The  intention  is,  rather,  to  utilize  the  desire  to  know  how 
it  is  done,  so  manifest  at  this  age,  and  to  apply  this 
general  and  very  intense  interest  to  the  field  of  character 


192  LEADERS    OF   YOUTH 

study.  Hence,  while  the  studies  are  arranged  chrono- 
logically, that  the  time  sense  may  not  be  violated,  it  is 
not  at  all  essential  that  each  and  every  lessen  be  consid- 
ered. In  fact,  if  interest  demands  two  Sundays  for  the 
completion  of  the  study  of  a  favorite  hero,  this  should 
only  indicate  genuine  interest,  and  the  additional  time  may 
be  had  by  eliminating  some  character  less  interesting  or 
less  valuable,  as  the  teacher  may  choose.  It  is  to  dis- 
cover the  springs  of  conduct  that  the  pupils  are  led  through 
these  courses,  not  to  cover  so  much  ground  nor  so  many 
pages  of  the  text. 

In  the  first  of  these  courses.  The  Leaders  of  Israel,  Old 
Testament  characters  of  worth  because  representing  one  or 
more  outstanding  qualities  are  chosen.  "We  become  like 
that  which  we  like,"  we  are  told,  and  the  endeavor  here  is 
always  to  present  those  men  who,  becoming  liked,  shall 
influence  the  pupils  to  become  like  them.  For  though 
times  change,  the  qualities  that  make  a  strong,  godly 
character  are  perpetuated  and  repeated  generation  by 
generation. 

5.  Lessons  for  those  fourteen  years  old.  The  second 
series.  Christian  Leaders,  continues  the  studies  on  into  the 
New  Testament,  displaying  the  same  choices  as  were  found 
iia  the  former  studies.  One  whole  quarter  is  devoted  to 
the  pioneer  and  adventurer,  that  hero  of  the  early  church, 
Paul,  not  as  theologian  but  as  traveler,  explorer,  hero,  and 
martyr. 

Geographical  studies  accompany  all  these  lessons,  map 
drawing  taking  a  prominent  place  in  the  handwork.  There 
is  also  opportunity  to  sketch  briefly  the  salient  points  in  the 
character  under  discussion,  model  outlines  being  presented 
in  the  teachers'  books  for  their  own  guidance. 

6.  Extra-Biblical  material.  Each  of  these  three 
courses  includes  some  extra-Biblical  lessons — that  is,  les- 
sons based  upon  material  outside  of  the  Bible.  These  les- 
sons occupy  thirteen  Sundays  or  one  quarter  of  the  entire 
year.    The  reason  for  the  introduction  of  such  non-Biblical 


LESSON  MATERIALS  FOR  INTERMEDIATES     193 

courses  is  twofold:  First,  they  show  that  religion  is  not 
confined  to  the  Bible  nor  to  the  men  of  Bible  days;  and, 
secondly,  they  are  needed  to  furnish  the  interests  of  the 
pupil  with  the  right  satisfactions — that  is,  they  often  con- 
tinue the  thought  under  discussion  to  its  logical  or  its 
chronological  end.  One  would  not  wish  the  youth  of  to-day 
to  think  of  religion  as  confined  to  some  past  time,  nor  as 
now  being  something  totally  different  from  what  it  has 
been.  God's  Spirit  still  moves  in  men's  lives,  and  we 
want  our  pupils  to  know  that  he  may  and  does  move  in 
their  hearts,  too.  To  show  how  God  still  deals  with  men 
to-day,  how  his  plans  and  purposes  are  being  fulfilled,  it 
is  necessary  to  go  outside  the  Bible  for  data.  This  is  true 
likewise  of  the  missionary  studies,  which  are  truly  gospel 
stories — that  is,  stories  of  how  the  Good  News  travels, 
and  not  less  so  of  those  lessons  devoted  to  telling  how  our 
Bible  came  to  us. 

The  extra-Biblical  material  used  in  the  series  Leaders  of 
Israel  is  inserted  for  the  summer  quarter  and  consists  of 
studies  of  those  sturdy  heroes  of  the  faith  who  brought 
religion  to  our  shores  and  made  it  live  in  the  experience 
of  our  own  American  forefathers.  They  are  thrilling  tales', 
of  faith  and  of  heroism  for  the  cause  for  which  Christ 
died. 

One  can  hardly  think  of  stopping  the  biographical  study 
of  Christian  leaders  with  Paul,  for  the  leaders  since  his 
day  have  only  gone  on  to  expand  his  work  and  to  carry 
the  Good  News  to  all  the  world.  In  their  own  way  these 
later  saints  have  been  as  original  and  as  compelling  in 
their  own  lives,  as  excellent  types  of  character  for  study, 
as  were  those  men  who  lived  in  and  just  after  the  days 
of  Christ.  How  it  does  make  our  boys  and  girls  realize  the 
timelessness  of  the  Christian  faith  and  the  unchanging 
qualities  of  Christian  character  to  discover  these  same 
traits  of  nobility  and  courage,  of  zeal  and  of  Christlikeness, 
in  men  through  all  the  Christian  era! 

It  needs  to  be  noted  that  at  the  close  of  the  intermediate 


194  LEADERS    OF   YOUTH 

period  a  return  is  made  to  the  subject  of  friendship.  The 
reasons  are  not  far  to  seek.  Now,  during  the  trying  years 
of  adjustment,  as  never  before  or  since,  one  needs  to  real- 
ize both  what  the  great  Friend  may  mean  to  one's  own 
life  and  to  learn  what  true  friendship  is  and  how  it  may  be 
shown.  Chapter  XVI,  "In  Quest  of  Friends,"  suggests  the 
need  of  those  ideals  of  true  friendship.  So  here  are  found 
thirteen  studies  in  some  of  the  world's  greatest  friendships, 
given  in  the  summer  quarter  but  by  no  means  to  be 
neglected. 

7.  The  teacher  the  key  to  the  situation.  Need  it  be 
said  that  these  lessons,  excellent  as  they  are,  can  never 
teach  themselves?  The  teacher  is  the  key  to  the  lesson 
every  time.  He  must  know  the  facts,  must  have  mastered 
details  so  well  that  he  is  free  to  teach  with  joy  and  with 
great  enthusiasm.  He  must  have  studied  his  lessons  not 
alone  from  his  own  teacher's  guide  and  from  the  Bible  but 
he  must  be  thoroughly  familiar  with  the  material  as 
presented  to  the  pupil  through  the  pupil's  book.  But, 
above  all  this,  he  must  be  saturated  with  the  spirit  of  the 
hour.  Jesus,  as  a  great  Hero  going  about  and  doing  good, 
must  have  become  real  to  him  if  he  would  make  his  class 
see  the  Hero  of  heroes.  The  missionaries  must  stand  forth 
in  the  teacher's  own  rich  imagination  if  he  would  depict 
their  lives  to  his  class.  The  thrilling  story  of  our  Bible 
must  first  thrill  him.  Each  character  must  stand  forth  not 
in  deeds  alone  but  with  the  hidden  motives  of  its  life 
clearly  revealed.  When  such  preparation  has  been  made, 
teaching  becomes  easy  and  delightful,  and  the  lesson  hour 
all  too  short  in  which  to  develop  the  truth. 

Questions 

Note. — The  reading  of  this  chapter  should  be  accom- 
panied by  actual  examination  of  the  lessons  themselves. 
If  you  do  not  possess  them,  send  to  your  church  publishing 
house  for  samples. 

1.  What  does  the  course  Gospel  Stories  attempt  to  do  for 


LESSON  MATERIALS  FOR  INTERMEDIATES     195 

the  pupils?    For  what  age  is  it  intended?    Into  what  parts 
is  the  course  divided? 

2.  Is  the  purpose  of  the  course  Leaders  of  Israel  to  give 
the  history  of  the  Old  Testament,  or  to  picture  the  times, 
or  to  supply  a  hero  tale,  or  what?  Why  the  character 
analysis  with  each  lesson? 

3.  What  great  character  is  given  an  entire  quarter  in 
Christian  Leaders?     Why? 

4.  Why  is  non-Biblical  material  used  in  this  series  of 
lessons? 

Observation 

Study  carefully  a  teen-age  class.  Do  the  lessons  fit  their 
needs?  If  things  are  not  going  well,  is  the  fault  with  the 
lesson  or  with  the  teacher?  If  graded  lessons  are  used, 
see  if  the  course  is  suitable  to  the  class.  Is  there  any 
handwork? 


CHAPTER  XIX 
LESSON  MATERIALS  FOR  SENIORS 

The  use  of  the  word  "senior"  in  this  chapter  is  exact, 
meaning  those  students  who  range  from  fifteen  to  seven- 
teen years  of  age  inclusive.  In  actual  practice,  however, 
few  leaders  of  these  groups  will  find  their  students  so 
closely  graded,  in  consequence  of  which  any  discussion  of 
lesson  material  will  have  to  be  considered  with  more  than 
ordinary  care.  Suppose,  for  instance,  that  the  so-called 
senior  class  of  your  school  has  in  it  pupils  from  twelve  to 
eighteen  years  of  age.  Such  poorly  assorted  classes  are 
unfortunately  not  uncommon.  If  the  class  cannot  possibly 
be  split  into  two  parts,  one  becoming  the  intermediate 
class,  and  the  other  the  senior,  then  the  teacher  will  have 
the  almost  impossible  task  of  choosing  lessons  that  will 
be  simple  enough  for  the  less  mature  yet  not  too  childish 
for  those  of  eighteen.  Even  where  the  range  of  ages  is  not 
so  extensive  it  may  be  necessary  to  consider  the  lessons 
already  discussed  in  the  preceding  chapter  before  deter- 
mining what  to  teach. 

In  other  words,  let  no  teacher  be  misled  by  the  words 
"senior"  and  "intermediate."  What  is  the  age  of  the  class? 
What  is  the  average  of  intellectual  attainment?  If  the 
members  of  the  class,  regardless  of  the  calendar,  are  about 
thirteen  years  of  age,  they  need  the  course  entitled  Leaders 
of  Israel.  Any  of  the  three  series  already  described,  there- 
fore, may  be  used  in  the  Senior  Department.  What  has 
been  written  about  these  courses  should  be  read  in  order  to 
know  whether  one  needs  them  and  also  to  know  what 
training  one's  students  have  had  or  should  have  had  before. 

1.  The  life  of  Christ.  What  lesson  material  should 
students  from  fifteen  to  eighteen  study?     On  what  basis 

196 


LESSON  MATERIALS  FOR  SENIORS  197 

should  these  courses  be  determined?  We  are  now  convinced 
that  the  student's  ability  and  his  interests  determine  in 
part  the  content  of  the  course.  Already,  in  preceding  chap- 
ters, we  have  considered  what  Biblical  and  non-Biblical 
materials  are  suited  to  the  growing  intellectual,  the  expand- 
ing social,  the  quickening  spiritual  perceptions  of  the  boys 
and  girls.  From  story  to  biography,  from  incident  to  char- 
acter study,  has  been  the  direction  of  development.  These 
students  are  now  nearing  the  age  of  momentous  decisions, 
of  spiritual  awakenings,  more  intense  in  some  ways  than 
ever  came  to  them  before.  It  is  therefore  the  time  of  all 
times  when  the  attention  should  be  centered  upon  the 
forces  that  operated  in  that  perfect  Life. 

The  character  study  of  the  two  years  preceding  cul- 
minates in  the  study  of  the  character  of  the  man  Christ 
Jesus  (see  chart,  page  188).  By  this  time  the  students  have 
learned  how  to  analyze  a  character,  to  discover  what  the 
man  did,  why  he  did  it,  and  what  value  his  deeds  have 
had  in  the  world.  Can  anything  be  more  needed  just  at 
this  age  than  to  study  what  Jesus  did,  what  motives  and 
purposes  controlled  his  actions,  and  what  value  for  this 
needy  world  his  deeds  have?  Can  there  be  any  doubt  that 
just  now,  above  all  other  times,  the  youth  should  be  led  to 
admire  and  love  the  Master,  Christ,  that,  naturally  and 
spontaneously,  he  may  commit  his  life  to  the  task  of  com- 
pleting the  work  that  Jesus  began  to  do? 

2.  Decision  Day  and  decisions.  Just  here  a  word 
about  decisions  and  Decision  Days  may  not  be  altogether 
amiss.  Those  who  have  prepared  the  courses  of  the  Inter- 
national Graded  Series  have  had  in  mind  that  decision  for 
Jesus  Christ  is  to  be  expected  in  the  years  between  twelve 
and  eighteen.  Already  it  has  been  pointed  out  how  great 
is  the  importance  of  these  years  in  the  religious  develop- 
ment of  the  young.  (See  Chapter  VI.)  The  end  sought  in 
all  Sunday-school  work,  and  especially  with  these  pupils, 
is  lives  intelligently  aware  of  what  the  service  of  Christ 
means,  of  what  his  life  has  meant  to  them  and  to  the  world 


198  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

as  Friend,  Redeemer,  and  Saviour,  and  whole-heartedly  and 
loyally  dedicated  to  his  service  and  cause. 

The  whole  drift  of  the  Igraded  lessons  has  been  toward 
just  this  end.  Especially  have  the  studies  during  these 
years  of  decision  been  arranged  with  the  thought  of  ac- 
quainting the  pupils  with  the  Master,  so  that  they  should 
discover  him  as  their  Saviour.  If  an  awakening  to  his 
service  has  come  in  the  earlier  years,  say  at  eleven  or 
twelve,  it  is  not  impossible  that  the  impulse  was  not 
entirely  foreign  to  other  social  impulses  of  these  years. 
The  more  personal  awakenings  to  the  claim  of  Jesus  Christ 
are  likely  to  be  felt  between  fifteen  and  twenty.  Therefore, 
it  is  necessary  to  intensify  the  appeal  of  Jesus  to  the  best 
and  the  noblest  in  youth  by  concentrating  for  a  whole  year 
upon  his  deeds  and  especially  upon  his  inner  spirit. 

Does  it  not  seem  obvious  that  no  fervid  Decision  Day 
can  do  the  work  that  is  done  by  conscientious  teachers  who, 
through  these  six  years,  are  again  and  again  leading  their 
pupils  to  new  decisions  for  Christ?  If  the  work  of  the 
teachers  is  well  done,  a  single  Decision  Day  once  a  year 
will  hardly  seem  in  place,  though  there  will  be  need  for 
public  acknowledgment.  If  the  work  of  the  teachers  is  not 
well  done,  if  these  or  similar  lessons  are  not  followed,  and 
if  careful  and  painstaking  building  up  of  true  appreciation 
of  Jesus  and  his  cause  has  not  been  carried  forward,  then 
Decision  Day  becomes  valueless  and  empty. 

In  a  true  sense,  then,  The  Life  of  Christ,  for  students  of 
fifteen,  is  the  culmination,  the  pivot,  of  the  entire  series  of 
lessons.  Toward  this  year's  work  all  that  precedes  has  led; 
on  the  basis  of  what  is  attained  this  year  future  studies  are 
determined.  This  year's  work  can  best  be  done  if  the 
lessons  that  have  gone  before  have  been  well  taught.  Step 
by  step  the  student  has  been  mounting  toward  new  visions 
of  duty,  of  service,  of  power,  of  love  and  loyalty.  Now, 
having  learned  to  know  the  Master,  having  glimpsed  the 
"heavenly  vision"  like  Paul  of  old,  his  life  will  be  deter- 
mined by  his  obedience  or  neglect.    This  is  no  hothouse,  no 


LESSON  MATERIALS  FOR  SENIORS  199 

forcing  process;  it  is  the  natural  and  normal  maturing 
of  life  processes  as  old  as  the  race  and  as  deep-seated  as 
our  instincts.  All  that  has  been  done  is  to  arrange  the 
situations  so  that  right  adjustments  are  easy,  right  choices 
not  difficult,  right  ambitions  aroused,  right  habits  begun, 
right  emotions  stirred.  Having  done  this,  the  teacher,  the 
superintendent,  and  the  pastor  must  depend  on  the  power 
divine  to  bless,  to  utilize,  to  own  as  his,  all  that  has  been 
attempted. 

3.  Christian  living.  Christ  having  been  made  Guide 
of  life,  what  are  the  problems  that  confront  the  young? 
What  are  the  things  that  must  be  learned  to  equip  one  for 
successful  Christian  living?  The  attempt  to  answer  these 
questions  is  found  in  the  lesson  material  for  those  sixteen 
years  of  age. 

It  is  not  true  that  all  boys  and  girls,  even  under  the 
desirable  environment  desired,  make  their  final  decisions 
in  their  sixteenth  year,  nor  yet  in  their  seventeenth.  It 
will  be  desirable  to  continue  to  hold  attention  upon  Chris- 
tian ideals  for  some  time.  The  attempt  up  to  this  time  has 
been  through  hero  stories  in  the  earlier  junior  years; 
through  a  more  careful  study  of  Jesus  and  his  life  at  the 
twelfth  year,  using  the  Gospel  of  Mark;  and,  finally,  through 
character  study  in  the  fifteenth  year.  The  approach  in  the 
new  studies  is  topical.  The  mental  life  of  high-school 
students  entirely  justifies  such  procedure.  The  topics  fall 
into  groups,  each  a  unit  in  itself,  but  all  combining  to 
define  the  ideals,  the  duties,  the  problems,  the  institutions, 
and  the  guidebook  of  the  Christian  religion. 

The  considerable  number  who  join  the  church  or  who, 
having  joined  previously,  now  desire  to  make  their  lives 
felt  in  some  definite  forms  of  activity  render  information 
regarding  church  membership,  its  duties  and  responsibili- 
ties, especially  valuable.  What  has  been  vainly  sought  in 
textbooks  for  pastors'  classes,  confirmation  classes,  or  pro- 
bationers' classes  is  contained  in  this  year's  lessons.  Not 
infrequently  the  pastor  is  the  very  one  who  ought,  at  the 


200  LEADERS    OF   YOUTH 

Sunday-school  hour,  to  teach  this  course.  Why  not?  He  is 
the  one  to  whom  the  young  naturally  look  for  guidance  at 
just  these  points.  He  is  the  one  who  shall  receive  these 
young  people  into  the  church  or,  having  received  them, 
now  has  his  obligation  to  train  them  in  their  religious 
lives.  So  it  comes  about  naturally  and  easily  that  pastor 
and  youths  are  thrown  together  in  most  intimate  and  vital 
relations,  quite  as  a  part  of  the  Sunday-school  program. 

In  other  cases,  especially  in  large  Sunday  schools,  where 
this  cannot  well  be  done,  instruction  can  be  carried  for- 
ward by  teachers  and,  in  many  cases,  more  skillfully  than 
by  pastors  who  have  had  no  training  in  the  art  of  teaching. 
But  in  all  such  cases  it  is  possible  to  have  the  encourage- 
ment and,  at  times,  the  presence  of  the  pastor,  who  should 
realize  that  this  class  is  a  class  in  training  in  church 
membership  and,  therefore,  under  his  peculiar  supervision. 

Such,  then,  is  the  lesson  material  planned  for  those 
sixteen  years  old.  Its  fundamental  purpose  is  to  help  those 
having  made  the  decision  to  follow  Christ,  to  become 
properly  adjusted  to  Christian  living,  the  Christian  Church, 
the  Word  of  God.  It  is  expected  that  by  thus  dwelling  upon 
and  extending  the  studies  regarding  Christian  ideals,  those 
not  yet  committed  to  the  Master  may  be  helped  toward 
this  decision.  It  is  hoped  also  that  these  lessons  will  stimu- 
late real  interest  in  and  love  for  the  Bible  as  a  means  of 
personal  spiritual  growth. 

4.  The  urorld  a  field  for  Christian  service.  Prom 
personal  ideals  and  decisions  to  adjustment  of  the  life  to 
its  tasks,  duties,  and  privileges  has  been  the  order.  What 
further  adjustments  need  be  made  in  these  formative 
years?  What  of  the  growing  recognition  that  one  must 
soon  take  his  place  in  the  world's  work,  must  find  the  task 
best  fitted  to  him  and  in  which  he  can  discover  the  largest 
possible  means  of  service?  How  shall  the  Sunday  school 
help  boys  and  girls  to  see  the  religious  significance  of  the 
profession  or  business  and  of  the  daily  routine  of  life  itself? 
Is  it  not  pitiful  to  see  high  resolves  vanish  or  grow  thin 


LESSON  MATERIALS  FOR  SENIORS  201 

and  attenuated  as  youth  emerges  from  the  idealism  of 
adolescence  into  the  "light  of  common  day"?  What  can 
be  done  to  prevent  the  break  so  common  between  the  sacred 
and  profane,  between  religion  as  emotion  and  religion  as 
life? 

Still  keeping  in  mind  that  final  decisions  are  not  by  all 
students  yet  made,  and  that  the  best  atmosphere  for  such 
later  decisions  is  found  in  the  consideration  of  Christian 
ideals  and  the  discussion  of  Christian  standards,  one  must 
realize  that  the  lessons  for  those  of  seventeen  are  planned 
to  aid  the  growing  youth  to  find  his  place  in  life's  great 
world  of  opportunity.  So  great  has  been  the  stress  upon 
the  work  of  the  ministry  as  peculiarly  religious  that  it  has 
tended  at  times  to  obscure  the  deeply  religious  implications 
of  other  professions — medicine,  the  law,  teaching, — and  of 
such  occupations  as  commerce,  homemaking,  farming,  and 
the  like.  What  is  needed  by  these  young  men  and  women 
is  a  standard  by  which  to  judge  whether  or  not  this  or 
that  affords  opportunity  for  growing  in  Christian  fellow- 
ship. Further,  many  of  our  young  people  are  so  placed 
that  they  have  little  or  no  chance  to  know  what  any  busi- 
ness or  profession,  outside  that  practiced  by  their  own 
fathers,  may  mean  to  them.  They  need  to  be  shown  that 
the  whole  world  is  a  field  for  Christian  service,  demanding 
every  kind  of  talent,  every  sort  of  skill.  Success,  that 
goddess  so  blindly  worshiped  among  us,  needs  to  be  looked 
at  with  cheerful  scrutiny  to  discover  just  what  she  may  be, 
and  how  far  her  behests  shall  be  followed.  What  is  true 
success  anyway? 

The  World  a  Field  -for  Christian  Service  is  not  a  series 
of  lessons  intended  primarily  for  the  vocational  guidance 
of  the  young;  rather  it  is  an  endeavor  to  give  oppor- 
tunity of  understanding  how  wide  is  the  call  for  Christian 
service  in  every  department  of  life  and  of  discovering  how 
one  may  make  any  calling  or  profession  a  means  of  building 
up  one's  own  Christian  life  and  of  enriching  the  world  by 
one's  endeavors. 


202  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

Added  to  the  lessons  on  vocations  are  a  series  on  "Prob- 
lems of  Youth  in  Social  Life,"  a  quarter's  study  in  Chris- 
tian morals.  The  subjects  are  just  those  about  which 
youth  is  more  or  less  perplexed,  such  as  justice,  truthful- 
ness, faithfulness  to  common  tasks,  liquor,  tobacco,  opiates, 
unclean  and  evil  speaking,  sex  morality,  recreations,  and 
the  like.  Coming  as  they  do  when  the  students  need  definite 
reenforcement  in  their  moral  living,  and  when  the  stand- 
ards of  childhood  are  being  severly  strained  by  contact 
with  an  unchristian  or  semi-Christian  society,  these  les- 
sons act  as  moral  tonic. 

A  further  elaboration  of  Christian  morals,  objectively 
studied  through  the  book  of  Ruth  and  the  Epistle  of 
James,  is  found  in  the  closing  quarter  of  this  most  inter- 
esting year's  program  of  lessons.  Altogether  these  lessons 
enforce  and  reenforce  homely  truths — the  claims  of  Christ 
and  of  his  service  as  supreme  in  the  life  that  really  is 
worth  while  to  this  world;  and  the  further  truth  that  the 
Christian  life  is  any  legitimate  endeavor,  shot  through 
with  the  Christian  ideals  of  love  and  service. 

5.  The  small  Sunday  school.  In  small  Sunday  schools, 
where  each  grade  is  not  sufficient  to  maintain  a  class, 
students  of  fifteen  to  eighteen  years  of  age  may  readily  be 
gathered  together  and  taught  any  one  of  these  courses,  pref- 
erably, of  course,  in  order  as  given  in  the  outline  in  the 
preceding  chapter  (see  page  188).  It  is  well  to  note,  also, 
that  to  teach  these  courses  the  teacher  must  possess  himself 
of  a  copy  of  the  teacher's  manual  and  also  of  the  pupil's 
textbook,  else  he  will  not  be  able  to  get  before  him  the 
pupil's  viewpoint.  It  should  also  be  borne  in  mind  that 
these  studies,  one  and  all,  are  graded  on  the  basis  of  attain- 
ments of  boys  and  girls  who  have  had  relatively  good 
schooling.  Hence,  if  they  are  to  be  used  in  a  school  in 
which  the  students  have  been  denied  the  advantages  of  good 
education,  it  will  be  more  satisfactory  to  all  to  choose 
lessons  a  little  below  the  age  of  the  students  rather  than 
to  select  those  of  their  years  or  beyond.    In  fact,  criticism, 


LESSON  MATERIALS  FOR  SENIORS  203 

where  criticism  has  been  heard,  is  that  the  lessons  are  too 
difficult  for  the  grade  intended  rather  than  too  simple. 

One  more  word:  It  is  not  necessary  to  await  the  grading 
of  the  entire  school  to  adopt  these  lessons  in  a  class.  With 
the  consent  of  the  superintendent  of  the  school  any  class 
may  find  it  profitable  to  take  up  one  of  these  courses.  Fre- 
quently teachers  who  have  become  dissatisfied  with  the 
uniform  lessons  have  found  their  problems  of  attention  and 
of  discipline  solved  through  the  use  of  these  courses.  The 
reason  is  obvious,  for  these  were  planned  most  carefully 
to  meet  the  needs  and  to  utilize  the  interests  of  pupils  of 
just  these  years.  They  are,  altogether,  the  best  endeavor 
yet  made  to  furnish  adequate  lesson  material  for  pupils 
of  fifteen  to  seventeen  years. 

Questions 


1.  Why  is  The  Life  of  Christ  especially  needed  at  this 


age 


2.  How  have  the  graded  lessons  prepared  for  intelligent 
decision  to  make  Jesus  one's  Saviour  and  Master? 

3.  What  is  the  aim  of  the  course  entitled  Christian  Liv- 
ing, and  how  does  it  seek  to  accomplish  its  aim? 

4.  What  reasons  have  you  for  believing  that  young  people 
are  beginning  to  think  of  their  lifework? 

5.  How  does  the  course  The  World  a  Field  for  Christian 
Service  help  to  determine  one's  place  in  life? 

Observation 

Ask  a  number  of  pupils  between  fifteen  and  eighteen 
what  kind  of  business  they  are  to  follow  as  adults.  Learn, 
if  possible,  how  they  came  to  choose  their  work.  Seek  for 
motives  in  their  choice.  Is  it  money,  or  an  easy  job,  or 
hope  of  fame,  or  natural  tastes,  or  the  accident  of  environ- 
ment? 


CHAPTER  XX 
GETTING   EXPRESSION   FROM   THE    CLASS 

DuRi>'G  the  years  under  consideration  the  larger  part  of 
education  is  achieved  by  means  of  study  and  of  expression. 
What  the  teacher  tells  his  pupils  is  much  the  least  of  his 
contribution  to  the  class.  What  he  gets  them  to  tell  and 
to  tell  understandingly  is  much  the  greater  part.  Expres- 
sion not  alone  strengthens  memory,  clarifies  thinking,  so- 
cializes one's  opinions,  and  stiffens  one's  convictions;  it 
proves  as  well  the  true  means  of  education.  Even  study, 
if  it  be  truly  productive  of  thought,  is  a  give-and-take  be- 
tween the  mind  of  the  writer  of  the  textbook  ancj  the  mind 
of  the  reader,  expression  on  his  part  taking  the  form  of 
inaudible  discussion  or  of  actual  tests  of  the  accuracy 
of  two  statements  found  in  the  book. 

The  forms  of  class  expression  among  intermediates  and 
seniors  are  varied.  Discussion,  the  keeping  of  notebooks, 
the  making  of  maps  and  the  discussion  of  geographical 
facts,  the  drawing  of  pictures,  the  compiling  of  charts,  and 
the  construction  of  models  are  among  the  number. 

1.  Discussion.  The  chief  method  of  teaching  and  the 
best  during  these  years  takes  the  form  of  discussion.  About 
the  worst  form  is  the  lecture.  Whatever  merit  lecturing 
may  have  at  other  periods  of  life,  it  has  none  to  commend 
it  in  these  departments.  The  discussion  is  a  free  and  direct 
conversation  between  teacher  and  pupils,  and  among  pupils 
themselves.  It  is  not  a  rambling,  undirected  chatter  but  a 
well-arranged  and  directed  dialogue,  in  which  the  teacher 
or  someone  designated  by  him  acts  as  leader,  but  in  which 
all  participate.  Good  discussion  is  never  accidental  but 
comes  from  deliberate  and  painstaking  preparation.  Its 
very  appearance  of  spontaneity  is  dependent  on  the  extent 

204 


GETTING   EXPRESSION   FROM    THE    CLASS      205 

of  preparation  that  has  gone  before.  If  the  lesson  is  pre- 
pared beforehand,  and  the  facts  are  well  in  the  minds  of  the 
pupils,  the  entire  class  period  can  be  spent  in  discussion. 
If,  on  the  other  hand,  the  pupils  have  done  no  studying, 
and  their  stock  of  information  about  which  the  discussion 
is  to  be  carried  on  is  limited  or  nil,  then  so  much  of  the 
class  hour  must  be  spent  in  gathering  information  as  shall 
be  needed  to  furnish  a  basis  for  intelligent  discussion. 

Suppose,  to  illustrate,  that  the  lesson  is  on  Amos.  Pre- 
sumably most  intermediates  are  ignorant  of  or  have  for- 
gotten the  facts  in  Amos'  life.  If,  then,  the  teacher  presumes 
to  open  a  discussion  upon  the  social  conditions  of  Amos' 
times  and  his  relation  to  them  he  will  soon  discover  apathy 
or  total  indifference  and  he  will  be  compelled  either  to  sup- 
ply the  information  requisite  to  the  discussion  or  he  will 
have  to  spend  the  hour  in  study  with  his  pupils  as  they  dig 
out  the  facts.  Either  home  study  or  cooperative  class  study 
during  the  week  or  on  a  given  Sunday  in  preparation  for 
later  discussion  is  imperative. 

So  much  for  the  pupils.  But  what  of  the  teacher?  His 
preparation  must  be  double:  first,  to  gain  mastery  of  the 
facts,  else  discussion  will  be  impossible;  and,  secondly,  in 
planning  just  how  he  shall  conduct  the  discussion.  For 
an  unplanned  discussion  is  like  a  locomotive  under  high 
pressure  on  an  open  track,  the  throttle  pulled,  and  the 
engineer  suddenly  become  paralyzed.  No  one  can  foretell 
what  wreck  may  be  in  store. 

Granting  that  the  pupils  have  prepared  the  lessons  sep- 
arately or  together,  discussion  may  proceed  through  the 
form  of  questioning:  "Why  did  Amos  go  to  Bethel?"  Two 
answers  may  be  forthcoming:  "Because  a  feast  was  being 
held  there";  or,  "Because  the  people  needed  his  warning." 
The  first  statement  is  entirely  correct  but,  if  the  discus- 
sion is  to  ensue,  must  be  followed  by  a  further  question. 
The  latter  answer  is  the  beginning  of  a  discussion  to  be  fol- 
lowed by  other  naturally  suggested  questions. 

Youths   enjoy    real    discussion.      It    is    thinking    aloud. 


206  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

social  thinking,  and  has  all  the  pleasure  of  social  coopera- 
tion. From  Amos  and  his  day  to  social  conditions  of  our 
own  time  is  a  most  natural  step.  "What  kinds  of  greediness 
do  we  find  about  us  to-day  corresponding  to  that  shown  by 
those  who  'panted  after  the  dust  on  the  heads  of  the  poor'?" 
The  kind  of  person  who  can  stem  the  popular  greediness 
of  Amos'  day  is  needed  to  stem  the  same  kind  of  spirit 
to-day.  And,  thus,  the  kind  of  man  Amos  was  indicates  the 
kind  of  man  one  must  be  to-day.  Such  discussion  is  real 
teaching,  for  one  must  recognize  that  the  only  truth  that 
is  vital  to  anyone  is  the  truth  that  he  has  thought  out  for 
himself.  To  be  told  a  thing  counts  for  little;  to  have 
thought  the  same  idea  out  for  oneself  makes  it  a  reality  in 
one's  whole  experience. 

The  means  for  drawing  out  profitable  discussion  are: 
first,  thorough  grasp  of  the  subject  by  the  teacher,  so  that 
questions  calling  for  expert  or  extended  knowledge  can  be 
accurately  answered,  or  the  source  of  information  given. 
To  be  frightened  at  discussion  because  of  one's  poor 
preparation  is  pitiable,  but  to  resort  to  the  lecture  method 
to  conceal  one's  mental  poverty  is  cowardly.  The  second 
step  in  preparation  for  discussion  is  to  learn  how  to  form 
questions  calling  for  the  expression  of  real  opinion.  Mere 
fact  questions  will  only  elicit  fact  answers.  Questions 
calling  for  a  "yes"  or  "no"  answer  will  not  arouse  debate. 
Sometimes  the  answer  to  a  question  of  fact  may  be  followed 
by  "Why?"  and  that  little  word  may  lead  to  an  extended 
and  vital  expression  of  motives,  causes,  and  moral  and  re-., 
ligious  valuations.  Many  suggestions  in  the  teacher's 
manuals  for  the  courses  considered  may  furnish  rich  sug- 
gestions in  forming  questions  for  discussion.  After  all, 
practice  in  this  field,  as  in  every  other,  improves  one  in 
the  art;  and  none  needs  to  feel  discouraged  if  at  the  begin- 
ning success  does  not  crown  his  efforts.  Try  again  and 
watch  to  see  where  interest  lags,  and  where  thinking  on 
the  part  of  the  pupil  ceases. 

2.   The  debate.    The  debate  is  a  more  highly  organized 


GETTING   EXPRESSION   FROM   THE    CLASS     207 

discussion,  in  which  the  facts  have  been  ascertained,  and 
the  terms  of  discussion  definitely  understood,  while  proof 
and  conviction  take  the  place  of  studious  effort  to  discover 
the  truth.  Debate  in  the  Sunday-school  class  proves  highly 
interesting;  but  unless  assignment  of  topics  is  made  well 
in  advance,  and  preparation  is  honestly  undertaken,  it  may 
become  puerile  and  have  tendencies  toward  vindictiveness. 
These  dangers  should  not  deter  the  courageous  teacher  from 
attempting  what  is  one  of  the  best  stimulatives  to  study 
and  to  genuine  interest. 

The  subject  for  debate  should  be  such  as  to  call  out 
knowledge  about  the  lesson,  to  create  real  thinking  upon 
some  phase  of  lesson  problems,  and  to  eventuate  in  con- 
victions of  worth.  Trivial  themes  and  abstract  discussions 
that  get  nowhere  should  always  be  avoided.  The  teacher's 
manual  frequently  suggests  excellent  debate  subjects. 

The  time  element  is  important  and  can  be  adjusted  only 
by  greatest  care.  Each  side  should  be  limited  to  as  many 
minutes  as  are  possible  under  the  restrictions  of  Sunday- 
school  programs  and  must  be  held  rigidly  to  the  allotted 
time.  Additional  time  may  be  gained,  and  added  interest 
created  by  placing  the  debates  in  the  schedule  of  mid- 
week activities.  Here,  upon  an  evening  not  restricted  by 
the  closing  of  the  school,  the  debate  may  be  lengthened 
to  a  point  where  real  results  may  be  obtained. 

The  use  of  judges  in  these  debates  is  another  considera- 
tion of  more  than  passing  interest.  One  cannot  always  get 
those  outside  the  class  to  act  as  judges,  nor  is  it  always 
wise.  Let  the  members  of  the  class  not  actively  participat- 
ing in  the  debate  act  as  judges;  or,  if  the  class  is  large, 
a  committee  from  these.  In  this  way  all  or  nearly  all  are 
required  to  give  closest  attention  to  the  debate  and  to  follow 
the  thought  of  the  hour. 

It  hardly  need  be  said  that  debates  should  not  become  so 
frequent  as  to  grow  monotonous  and  dry.  These  can  be 
the  sauce  in  instruction,  kept  as  special  appetizers. 

3.   Geography  and  map  work.    In  developing  the  back- 


208  LEADERS    OP    YOUTH 

ground  of  a  man's  life  the  geographical  and  historical  set- 
ting frequently  calls  for  extended  investigation.  The  geo- 
graphical sense  is  by  now  well  developed  and  may  be  relied 
upon  to  secure  and  maintain  interest  if  the  teacher  knows 
how  to  utilize  it.  There  is  no  hidden  secret  here  but  plain 
common  sense  and  careful  preparation.  With  the  courses 
upon  character  study  are  provided  outline  maps  for  the 
pupils.  These  are  supplemented  in  the  teacher's  manual 
by  completed  maps,  showing  where  the  man  lived,  traveled, 
and  worked.  Over  the  pupil's  maps  it  is  possible  to  draw 
out  the  essential  facts  of  the  man's  life.  During  the 
following  week  each  pupil  may  fill  in  his  own  map  and 
thus  review  the  facts  about  which  will  cluster  the  discus- 
sion. To  tie  an  event  to  a  locality  is  to  give  a  sense  of 
reality  to  the  deed.  To  place  a  man's  life  geographically 
makes  him  more  human  and  comprehensible. 

Simple  outline  maps,  not  confusing  the  student's  mind  by 
a  multitude  of  details,  are  far  better  than  the  conventional 
maps  in  the  backs  of  our  Bibles  or  hanging  upon  our 
Sunday-school  walls.  The  map  thus  used  becomes  an  out- 
line of  the  chief  events  discussed.  Relief  maps  develop  a 
knowledge  of  topography  but,  while  valuable  additions 
to  geographical  study,  are  not  indispensable.  They  may 
be  made  by  the  class  in  sand  or  paper  pulp  or  other  readily 
molded  substance,  and  then  furnish  both  incentive  for  class 
activity  during  the  week  and  for  instruction  on  Sunday. 

Additional  geographical  help  is  found  in  the  stereographs 
now  provided  for  Bible  study.  These  pictures,  which, 
through  the  stereoscope,  give  depth  as  well  as  height  and 
breadth,  stand  out  in  lifelike  form.  They  are  difficult  to 
handle  if  the  teacher  has  to  wait  for  each  pupil  to  take  his 
peep,  but  they  prove  convenient  additions  if  rightly  used 
as  valuable  additions  to  the  usual  tools  of  teaching.  They 
may  be  obtained  from  Underwood  &  Underwood,  417  Fifth 
Avenue,  New  York  City. 

4.  Notebooks.  Notebooks  become  the  habitual  accom- 
paniment to  Sunday-school  study  for  those  who  have  be- 


GETTING   EXPRESSION   FROM   THE    CLASS      209 

come  accustomed  to  the  graded  lessons.  The  pupils  who 
have  already  passed  up  through  the  lower  grades  have 
become  skilled  in  their  use,  know  their  value,  and  expect  to 
continue  such  activity.  To  others,  however,  especially  to 
those  who  have  for  the  first  time  been  introduced  to 
graded  lessons,  the  notebook  and  the  work  incident  to  its 
use  are  strange,  and  not  only  must  definite  information  be 
given,  but  clever  stimulants  must  be  administered,  until 
their  value  and  the  pleasure  from  them  are  discovered. 
How  this  shall  be  done  will  be  discussed  more  fully  in 
the  following  chapter.  It  is  here  emphasized  that  as 
teachers  we  shall  have  to  create  an  interest  in  notebook 
work  if  it  is  to  become  a  part  of  the  program  of  the  class. 

Such  work  may  be  done  during  the  class.  At  this  age, 
however,  the  time  on  Sunday  can  much  better  be  spent  in 
discussion,  and  the  handwork  of  various  sorts  can  be  left 
to  the  midweek  hours  or  to  Sunday-afternoon  gatherings. 

Some  data  regarding  the  use  of  notebooks  are  worth  add- 
ing at  this  point.  First,  notebooks  will  assume  just  the 
importance  in  the  eyes  of  the  pupil  which  he  finds  them 
to  have  in  the  mind  of  the  teacher.  If  the  teacher  looks 
upon  such  work  as  trivial  and  childish,  the  pupils  will 
quickly  adopt  the  same  attitude.  If  he  takes  the  trouble  to 
make  a  notebook  of  his  own,  others  will  more  readily 
follQw  his  example.  Secondly,  recognition  of  real  merit  in 
this  work  will  stimulate  excellence;  only,  real  merit  should 
not  be  confused  with  mere  tidiness,  as  much  as  all  seek  to 
have  the  adolescent  become  orderly.  Boys  are  conspicu- 
ously careless  in  details  but  often  excel  in  penetration  and 
logical  sequence.  Originality,  clear  thinking,  and  actual 
endeavor  are  of  vastly  greater  value  than  neatness  and 
aesthetic  demonstrations.  Not  that  these  are  to  be  despised, 
but  they  are  secondary  in  studies  requiring,  primarily, 
clear  thinking  and  judgment  upon  ethical  and  religious 
matters. 

Charts,  outlines,  and  such  aids  to  thinking  are  great 
guides  to  the  pupils;  there  are  few  ways  in  which  character 


210  LEADERS    OF   YOUTH 

traits  can  be  better  represented  and  memorized.  The 
teacher's  manual,  again,  provides  excellent  aids  in  making 
such  charts,  but  better  than  any  ready-made  devices  is  the 
creation  cooperatively  with  the  class  of  such  charts  as 
fihall  truly  represent  the  work  under  discussion.  These 
charts,  made  together  in  the  class,  should  be  copied  in  the 
notebook  of  each  pupil,  serving  thus  to  recall  his  studies 
in  the  latter  part  of  the  course. 

5.  Models.  The  construction  of  models  of  buildings,  of 
dress,  of  implements  in  use  in  Bible  days,  or  of  similar 
objects  to  represent  missionary  lessons  has  its  place  but 
may  be  overemphasized  during  these  years.  Many  of  these 
pupils  have  such  poor  ideas  of  what  Bible  times  were  like 
and  what  missionary  lands  to-day  are  like  that  all  such 
models  are  needed  to  make  clear  what  one  is  teaching.  It 
is  therefore  altogether  within  the  province  of  the  depart- 
ment to  spend  such  time  as  is  necessary  to  create  in  minia- 
ture reproductions  of  the  social  experiences  of  the  past  so 
far  as  mere  material  objects  can  so  construct  them. 

It  is  always  well  to  keep  in  mind,  however,  that  models 
are  not  ends  but  means,  that  the  purpose  they  serve  is  but 
to  make  the  truth  live  to  the  imagination  of  youth.  There- 
fore, it  is  unfortunate  to  find  that  sometimes  this  work  of 
construction  is  taken  as  indicative  of  real  moral  and  reli- 
gious growth,  when,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  the  making  of  a 
house  such  as  that  occupied  by  Jesus  in  Nazareth  is  in 
itself  no  more  religious  that  to  construct  one  exactly  like 
those  used  by  the  pupils  themselves.  Anything  that  will 
hold  intelligent  attention  upon  Bible  or  missionary  scenes 
and  experiences  serves  a  good  purpose  and  is  worth  con- 
sidering so  that  such  constructive  tasks  have  not  infre- 
quently been  found  most  valuable  adjuncts  to  the  best 
teaching. 

6.  Exhibits.  To  stimulate  all  handwork  in  these  depart- 
ments exhibit  day  should  be  observed  once  each  year.  On 
this  occasion  notebooks,  maps,  charts,  models,  pictures,  dis- 
play cards,  and  other  handwork  of  the  pupils  should  be 


GETTING   EXPRESSION   FROM   THE    CLASS      211 

placed  so  that  the  public  may  easily  look  them  over.  Par- 
ents and  friends  should  be  invited  to  inspect  the  exhibit. 
Such  a  day  yields  two  fruits:  first,  it  stimulates  careful 
work  on  the  part  of  the  pupils  in  view  of  the  fact  that  their 
work  is  to  be  made  public;  secondly,  it  stimulates  coopera- 
tion with  the  home.  No  parent  wishes  his  child  to  do  sec- 
ond-rate work,  and  such  comparisons  quickly  put  the  par- 
ents on  the  watch  to  see  how  well,  in  comparison  with 
others  of  the  same  age,  their  children  are  doing.  They 
also  furnish  parents  and  friends  with  tangible  evidence  of 
the  sort  of  work  the  teacher  is  trying  to  do  with  his  pupils 
and  make  intelligent  cooperation  possible. 

7.  Honors  and  credits.  Where  a  system  of  marking  or 
grading  is  followed,  handwork  furnishes  an  excellent  guide 
in  judging  the  pupil's  work.  Where  the  spirit  of  the  class 
is  what  it  ought  to  be,  the  group  approval  or  disapproval 
is  worth  much  more  than  any  other  form  of  judgment  upon 
one's  work.  In  addition  to  painstaking  marks  or  credits 
it  is  possible  for  the  teacher  to  call  attention  from  time  to 
time  to  unusually  good  work  and  thus  encourage  each  to 
do  his  best. 

Inasmuch  as  these  pupils,  especially  those  in  the  Inter- 
mediate Department,  are  still  in  school  and  familiar  with 
school  systems  of  grading,  such  markings  prove  satisfac- 
tory and  are  easily  recognizable  signs  of  worth.  Many 
schools  adopt  the  system  of  giving  credit  to  notebook  work, 
to  attendance,  to  home  preparation,  to  punctuality,  and 
even  to  church  attendance  in  such  proportions  that  the  total 
of  proficiency  shall  equal  100.  Such  a  system  is  better 
adapted  to  the  earlier  grades  but  may  become  an  incentive 
to  good  work  even  as  late  as  the  Senior  Department. 

8.  Conclusion.  Once  again  let  it  be  repeated  that  good 
teaching  for  these  pupils  consists  not  only  in  talking,  no 
matter  how  well  the  talking  is  done,  but  in  getting  expres- 
sion from  the  class,  individually  and  from  the  group  as  a 
whole.  Hence,  it  is  well  for  the  teacher  to  pause  from 
time  to  time  to  ask,  "What  are  my  pupils  doing  which 


212  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

proves  that  they  are  thinking  upon  the  matters  we  dis- 
cuss from  Sunday  to  Sunday?  How  are  they  expressing 
themselves?  What  other  and  different  methods  of  expres- 
sion can  I  employ  which  shall  compel  them  to  think?" 

Expression  in  the  larger  sense  of  living — the  only  true 
expression  of  religious  life,  after  all — we  have  considered 
already.  Such  life  expression  is  far  more  vital  in  the  long 
run  than  notebooks,  maps,  and  charts,  and  all  the  other 
class  activities  on  Sunday.  To  put  religion  into  the  every- 
day lives  of  the  pupils  is  the  great  end  of  all  religious 
teaching. 

Questions 

1.  Why  is  study  essential  to  real  discussion? 

2.  What  sort  of  questions  must  the  teacher  form  if  he 
will  promote  discussion? 

3.  What  are  some  of  the  essentials  of  good  debate  in  a 
Sunday-school  class? 

4.  What  use  can  be  made  of  maps  as  aids  in  getting  ex- 
pression from  the  class? 

5.  Of  what  value  are  notebooks,  and  how  can  the  keep- 
ing of  them  be  encouraged? 

6.  How  does  exhibit  day  tend  to  improve  the  quality  and 
quantity  of  the  pupil's  work? 

Observation 

Go  to  the  high  school  and  watch  the  methods  by  which 
expression  is  secured  from  the  pupils.  Does  the  teacher 
question,  have  reports,  debates,  notebooks,  charts,  maps? 


CHAPTER  XXI 
HOW  TO  GET  THE  PUPILS  TO  STUDY 

Before  answering  the  question  "How  may  I  get  my  pupils 
to  study?"  one  may  well  ask  himself,  "Why  get  my  pupils 
to  study?"  For  to  secure  study  the  teacher  must  realize 
that  it  is  essential  to  learning,  and  he  must  show  his  pupils 
valid  reasons  for  putting  forth  such  effort.  Furthermore, 
he  must  be  able  to  furnish  specific  directions  if  study  is  to 
accomplish  the  desired  results. 

1.  Motives  to  study.  Why,  then,  should  pupils  study? 
What  incentive  can  be  proposed  to  the  boys  and  girls  which 
will  lead  to  vigorous,  sustained,  intelligent  mental  effort? 
Motives  leading  to  study  are  not  different  from  those  lead- 
ing to  other  forms  of  effort.  They  are,  first,  pleasure  in 
accomplishment;  secondly,  social  approval;  thirdly,  means 
to  some  desirable  end;  personal  or  social;  and,  fourthly, 
compulsion. 

Joy  of  achievement  comes  first  in  the  list  but  last  in  real 
life.  Everyone  has  at  some  time  felt  the  exhilaration  of 
accomplishing  a  difficult  task,  but  few,  if  any,  have  set 
out  upon  its  accomplishment  from  this  motive  alone.  It 
is  wonderful  to  possess  skill  as  a  pianist.  It  gives  a  sense 
of  mastery  to  produce  beautiful  harmonies  by  means  of 
ivory  keys.  But  it  is  love  of  music  or  desire  for  social 
approval  which  motivates  our  long,  weary  hours  of  practice, 
— or  perhaps  it  is  compulsion — and  not  the  joy  of  accom- 
plishment. Only  in  mature  life  do  we  know  the  joy  of 
achievement  sufficiently  to  make  it  a  contributing  motive  to 
action. 

To  set  before  the  pupils  the  joy  of  "getting  the  lesson," 
to  picture  the  pleasure  that  will  come  from  having  care- 
fully studied  a  subject,  is  to  appeal  to  a  motive  very  weak 

213 


214  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

if  at  all  effective.  To  say  that  one  ought  to  study  in  order 
that  he  may  know  is  too  indefinite,  too  far  removed,  to  get 
results. 

Social  approval  plays  a  far  greater  part  in  acquirement, 
mental  or  material,  than  is  at  first  supposed.  We  labor 
long  and  hard  to  gain  the  Approval  of  our  teacher,  of  our 
parents,  or  of  our  friends.  We  do  not  wish  ourselves  dis- 
graced. We  seek  the  reward  offered,  not  because  we  care 
for  the  reward  but  because  we  want  to  know  ourselves 
approved.  This  is  appealing  to  a  primitive  motive,  an  ele- 
mentary impulse — to  egotism,  to  put  it  bluntly — which  in 
later  years  becomes  self-respect.  For  juniors  this  appeal 
is  strong.  By  the  time  the  intermediate-senior  years  are 
reached  it  has  become  rather  weak.  But  social  opinion 
always  weighs  in  one's  efforts. 

Compulsion  has  no  place  in  Sunday-school  pedagogy.  It 
has  all  but  ceased  to  have  a  place  in  all  pedagogy,  for  it  has 
been  discovered  to  be  far  less  satisfactory  than  others,  such 
as  have  already  been  described.  Especially  is  this  true  in 
the  case  of  intermediate  and  senior  pupils.  "Thou  must" 
should  give  way  to  reason  and  to  other  kinds  of  incentives. 

2.  The  chief  motive.  The  chief  motive  in  all  endeavor, 
educational  or  otherwise,  is  found  in  one's  determination 
to  reach  some  desired  end,  to  meet  a  situation,  or  to  get 
results  wished  for.  The  boy  who  wishes  to  build  a  boat 
does  not  need  to  be  urged  to  the  task  of  studying  how 
boats  are  built.  The  girl  who  is  interested  in  basketry  and 
wishes  to  make  a  new  sort  of  basket  is  ready  to  discover, 
through  friends  or  books,  the  means  to  accomplish  her 
desire.  Self-imposed  tasks  demanding  knowledge  find  their 
own  motives.  Whenever  we  wish  for  knowledge  to  accom- 
plish some  end,  intellectual  or  material,  we  seek  every 
avenue  through  which  such  knowledge  may  come. 

If  a  contest  of  intellect  is  ahead  of  us,  if  we  wish  to 
debate  some  question  or  to  discuss  some  issue,  we  seek 
enthusiastically  for  all  the  aid  available.  We  bombard  our 
friends,  we  go  to  the  library  if  one  is  within  reach.     If 


HOW  TO  GET  THE  PUPILS  TO  STUDY  215 

our  progress  is  stopped  by  ignorance,  and  we  possess  the 
key  to  unlock  the  knowledge  that  tears  away  the  barrier^ 
we  turn  instantly  and  naturally  to  the  information  that  we 
lack. 

In  these  conditions  study  assumes  its  rightful  place.  It 
is  always  a  means,  and  never  an  end.  If,  therefore,  a 
leader  would  get  his  pupils  to  study,  he  must  show  them 
some  object  worthy  of  their  effort,  some  limitation  of  their 
knowledge  plus  some  source  of  information  that  is  worth 
seeking.  He  must  stimulate  their  curiosity,  awaken  their 
interest,  and  thus  furnish  adequate  ends  that  study  shall 
be  the  means  of  attaining. 

To  contribute  something  to  a  discussion  from  one's  own 
stock  of  information  brings  satisfaction.  To  be  able  to 
contribute  that  information  one  may  be  compelled  to  study 
long  and  hard.  It  is  useless  to  expect  study  in  the  class  in 
which  the  teacher  is  the  only  mouthpiece,  in  which  the 
only  intellect  called  upon  actively  to  participate  in  class 
life  is  the  teacher's.  Discussion,  real  discussion,  awakens 
expectancy  and  the  desire  to  cooperate  in  the  social  enter- 
prise. 

3.  Lesson  assignment.  Thus,  lesson  assignment  takes 
a  foremost  place  in  the  problem  of  getting  study  from  the 
class.  Assigning  a  lesson  is  not  stating  that  "we  shall 
take  the  next  lesson  next  Sunday"  but  is  awakening  such 
interests  as  shall  lead  to  preparation  in  order  that  one  may 
be  able  to  discuss  the  lesson.  No  one  wants  to  appear  a 
dunce,  or,  stated  conversely,  each  wishes  to  appear  as  wise 
as  possible.  Hence,  a  double  motive  appears  in  class  dis- 
cussion— the  desire  to  know  in  order  to  participate  in  dis- 
cussion, and  the  desire  to  know  in  order  not  to  appear 
a  fool.  To  get  studying  done,  then,  the  teacher  must  make 
discussion  interesting  and  desirable  and  he  must  awaken 
interests  in  the  new  discussion  that  shall  be  satisfied  only 
through  lesson  preparation. 

Awakening  interests  through  proper  lesson  assignment 
is,  then,  an  essential  step.     Curiosity  is  a  helpful  factor  in 


216  LEADERS    OF    YOUTH 

every  such  endeavor.  Supposing  that  Lesson  22  of  Leaders 
uf  Israel  is  to  be  used  on  the  following  Sunday,  the  teacher 
may  awaken  interest  by  asking  what  other  devices  besides 
flipping  a  coin  are  used  in  determining  by  chance.  What 
of  choosing  courts  by  tossing  up  a  racquet?  Or  of  choos- 
ing "ins"  or  "outs"  by  measuring  hands  on  the  ball  club? 
David  had  a  way  of  choosing  by  lot.  The  next  lesson  tells 
what  that  way  was  and  of  how  great  a  part  it  played  in 
David's  life.  The  story  in  the  pupil's  book  and  the  Bible 
readings  will  explain  the  matter. 

Such  an  assignment,  while  not  going  into  the  more 
vital  elements  that  will  be  discussed,  will  at  least  stimu- 
late curiosity  sufficient  to  get  some  work  done  on  the  les- 
son. Personal  requests  for  single  bits  of  information  that 
shall  be  needed  on  the  following  Sunday  are  often  heeded 
where  general  assignments  go  unnoticed.  Only  it  must  be 
remembered  that  to  make  a  request  for  information  and 
then  to  neglect  to  call  for  it  kills  the  very  motive  that  one 
is  attempting  to  arouse. 

4.  Social  study.  Studying  may  become  a  highly  de- 
lightful social  enterprise.  To  gather  at  the  home  of  one 
of  the  members  of  the  class  or  at  the  teacher's  home,  to 
bring  notebooks  and  pencils  and  other  necessary  books, 
to  divide  up  the  work  of  research,  to  construct  the  maps 
together,  and  to  keep  the  fine  spirit  of  friendship  and  of 
healthy  rivalry  running  through  it  all  make  for  the  best 
interests  of  the  individual  and  of  the  class.  Many  ado- 
lescents who  will  undertake  no  work  independently  find 
that  such  cooperative  study  is  "great  fun."  And  one  must 
remember  that  the  public  school  is  making  heavy  demands 
upon  the  time  and  vitality  of  these  young  people.  To 
charge  the  study  for  Sunday  with  the  fine  fellowship  that 
should  characterize  all  class  activities  is  only  to  carry  over 
into  this  field  of  life  some  of  the  same  spirit  that  already 
manifests  itself  in  lesson  preparation  for  high  school. 
Such  study  groups  also  furnish  the  teacher  unusual  oppor- 
tunities to  know  the  ideas  and  capacities,  the  interests  and 


HOW  TO  GET  THE  PUPILS  TO  STUDl'  217 

ambitions,  of  his  pupils  as  does  nothing  in  the  brief  lesson 
period.  Indeed,  it  is  a  question  if  the  Sunday  school 
shall  not  have  to  come  to  the  point  in  the  very  near  future 
of  recognizing  the  desirability  of  supervised  study  and 
providing  for  it  in  the  regular  program  of  the  school.  Per- 
haps, after  all,  those  who  attempt  such  ventures  are  only 
anticipating  the  adoption  of  a  better  plan  by  the  entire 
Sunday-school  world.  Those  who  have  been  willing  to 
spend  time  in  this  venture  have  pronounced  it  admirable 
from  every  point  of  view. 

5.  Tools  for  study.  A  serious  handicap  to  study  arises 
from  poverty  of  books  of  reference.  To  ask  a  pupil  to 
look  up  some  subject  in  an  encyclopaedia  when  such  a  book 
is  not  to  be  found  in  his  home,  or  to  ask  him  to  seek  out 
some  obscure  Biblical  point  when  the  resources  are  not  at 
his  command,  is  killing  to  the  whole  spirit  of  the  enter- 
prise. The  teacher  must  learn  both  the  extent  of  the 
pupil's  own  ability  and  the  available  sources  of  informa- 
tion. The  Sunday  school  may  provide  a  reference  library 
that  shall  help  solve  this  difficulty,  or  the  class  may  from 
time  to  time  purchase  a  few  books  of  its  own. 

Even  then  the  teacher  will  need  to  have  abundance  of 
patience  to  acquaint  pupils  with  methods  of  using  such 
books.  Many  college  students  upon  their  first  appear- 
ance in  the  college  library  have  to  be  shown  the  use  of 
indexes,  tables  of  contents,  and  other  similar  aids.  What, 
then,  should  one  expect  of  high-school  students  or  of  those 
whose  education  has  been  truncated  in  the  grades  because 
of  necessity  or  of  neglect?  There  is  still  need  of  teaching 
our  boys  and  girls  how  to  handle  their  Bibles,  how  to  use  a 
concordance,  what  the  supplementary  material  at  the  end 
of  the  Scriptures  is  for,  and  other  equally  valuable  mat- 
ters essential  to  home  study.  Here,  again,  cooperative 
study  leads  naturally  to  just  such  disclosures. 

The  more  nearly  the  teaching  of  the  lesson  and  the  prep- 
aration of  the  lesson  become  truly  cooperative  and  social, 
the  likelier  it  is  that  real  study  will  be  done.     Hence,  it  is 


218  LEADERS    OP    YOUTH 

well  in  the  senior  years  certainly,  and,  under  favorable 
circumstances,  even  in  the  intermediate  years  occasionally 
to  place  the  assignment  of  the  lesson  and  its  subsequent 
teaching  in  the  hands  of  a  pupil.  Remembering  that  the 
prevailing  method  of  instruction  is  discussion,  it  is  en- 
tirely conceivable  that  with  a  little  help  from  the  teacher 
in  his  preparation  one  of  the  pupils  may  show  real  ability 
in  directing  the  discussion.  Further,  the  teacher  may  then 
find  his  place  among  the  pupils,  taking  part  in  the  discus- 
sion himself  on  their  level  and  quietly  but  indirectly  direct- 
ing the  discussion  in  the  guise  of  questions  and  suggestions. 
Not  only  is  such  training  good  for  the  class;  it  proves  ex- 
cellent training  for  the  pupil  in  charge.  But,  best  of  all,  it 
makes  study  and  recitation  truly  cooperative,  the  result  of 
the  direction  of  one's  peers,  and,  hence,  delightfully  stimu- 
lating and  vital. 

The  debate,  as  we  have  seen,  is  only  a  variation  of  this, 
in  which  two  or  more  members  assume  charge  and  furnish 
the  discussion.  And  it  should  be  noted  that  preparation  for 
such  intellectual  combats  is  most  easily  secured.  Here  the 
end  sought — success  in  the  debate — is  so  obvious  and  so 
desirable  that  the  means — study  of  the  lessons — is  gladly 
undertaken. 

Questions 

1.  What  four  means  can  you  suggest  for  getting  the  les- 
son studied?  Which  is  of  the  greatest  value  to  the  teacher? 
Which  should  seldom  or  never  be  used? 

2.  Is  study  a  means  or  an  end? 

3.  What  place  has  lesson  assignment  in  lesson  study? 
Illustrate. 

4.  What  is  meant  by  cooperative  study? 

5.  Is  it  fair  to  ask  pupils  to  work  without  tools?  What 
tools  are  necessary  to  lesson  study? 

Observation 
Watch  a  teacher  of  teen-age  group  assign  the  lesson  and 


HOW  TO  GET  THE  PUPILS  TO  STUDY  219 

determine  how  far  such  assignment  is  intended  to  stimulate 
home  study.    Does  he  expect  home  study? 

If  teaching  an  intermediate  or  senior  class  try  the  plan 
of  having  the  class  agree  upon  an  evening  of  the  week,  or 
an  hour  at  some  other  time,  at  which  all  may  study  the 
lesson  together  under  your  supervision. 


CHAPTER  XXII 
ADOLESCENT  DOUBTS  AND   QUESTIONS 

The  adolescent  years  have  frequently  been  called  years 
of  doubt.  This  is  an  inaccurate  and  uncritical  judgment. 
More  accurately  they  are  years  of  candid  inquiry,  of  exper- 
iment. The  new  intellectual  life,  insistent  upon  knowing 
the  facts  in  any  case,  is  determined  to  go  beyond  facts  to 
their  reasons  and  their  causes.  The  credulity  of  childhood 
is  giving  way  to  the  spirit  of  inquiry  and  of  investigation. 
As  well  attempt  to  stem  the  ocean's  rising  tide  as  to  stop 
this  intellectual  awakening.  To  do  so  would  be  to  stultify 
the  mental  life  of  the  young,  leaving  the  youth  dissatisfied 
with  his  source  of  information,  compelling  him  to  seek 
from  less  able  and  less  sympathetic  sources  answers  to  his 
insistent  questions. 

1.  Why  pupil's  questions?  How,  then,  shall  the  Sun- 
day-school teacher  treat  the  questions  of  his  pupils?  To 
answer  this  one  must  know  more  clearly  the  source  of 
youth's  interrogations.  The  tendency  to  personalize  all  the 
forces  of  nature  has  been  a  part  of  the  credulity  and  inex- 
perience of  childhood.  What  the  race  through  long  genera- 
tions has  begun  to  acquire  of  knowledge  of  nature's  laws 
and  ways,  we  endeavor  to  put  into  the  possession  of  the 
child  in  relatively  short  order.  Primitive  people  carry 
their  childish  explanations  of  natural  phenomena  all 
through  their  maturer  years,  as  is  illustrated  in  the  super- 
stitions of  non-Christian  peoples.  What  we  try  to  do  for 
the  child  is  to  emancipate  him  from  these  childish  views 
and  enable  him  to  rationalize  his  environment.  This 
change  must  be  made  abruptly  at  ten  or  twelve  years  of 
age.     Frequently  little  or  no  preparation  has  been  given, 

220 


ADOLESCENT  DOUBTS  AND  QUESTIONS         221 

and  from  the  credulity  of  childhood  the  pupil  emerges  as 
by  magic  into  a  world  of  law  and  order,  of  consistent  rela- 
tions. 

As  if  to  emphasize  the  difficulty  still  further  our  religious 
thinking  lags  behind  our  accepted  educational  standards, 
tending  to  divide  the  world  of  religion  sharply  from  the 
world  of  nature  and  of  science.  Miracle,  accident,  and  un- 
reasoning faith  confront  the  child  in  his  religious  life; 
law,  order,  and  reason  hold  sway  in  the  world  that  opens 
before  him  in  school,  textbook,  and  nature.  No  wonder  he 
is  compelled  to  ask  questions  and  to  make  sure  of  his  bear- 
ings as  he  attempts  to  live  in  this  new  world. 

"I  do  not  know  what  to  do  with  my  daughter,"  said  a 
physician  to  a  Sunday-school  worker.  "In  Sunday  school 
she  is  learning  to  live  by  faith  without  using  her  reason; 
in  high  school  she  is  constantly  taught  to  use  her  brains. 
In  Sunday  school  she  finds  a  world  of  miracle,  chance;  in 
public  school  she  is  taught  that  this  is  a  world  of  law. 
We  are  Methodists,  and  I  want  her  to  become  a  loyal 
Christian;  but  she  is  facing  grave  difficulties  if  not  real 
danger."  Some  such  anxiety  has  been  the  possession  of 
many  an  anxious  father  or  mother  and  of  not  a  few  Sunday- 
school  teachers. 

2.  Frankness  and  candor.  Obviously  it  will  not  do  to 
ignore  pupils'  questions.  They  come  from  minds  sincerely 
desiring  to  know  the  truth.  To  refuse  to  answer,  to  ignore 
as  of  little  moment,  or  to  answer  fiippantly  is  hardly  less 
than  real  cruelty.  To  have  placed  upon  one  the  responsi- 
bility of  training  the  minds  of  youth  in  religious  thought, 
feeling,  and  action  carries  with  it  the  obligation  to  face 
frankly  their  questions. 

Nor  will  it  do  to  evade  these  questions.  Ambiguous  an- 
swers and  other  "artful  dodges"  will  only  arouse  the  open 
or  concealed  disgust  of  the  class.  Bluffing  is  nowhere  less 
acceptable  nor  less  tolerated  than  in  answering  questions 
upon  the  solution  of  which  hangs  the  destiny  of  a  soul. 
Frank,  sincere  answers  should  be  given.     Youth  asks  for 


222  LEADERS  OF  YOUTH 

such,  the  nature  of  the  situation  demands  them,  the  teach- 
er's own  integrity  compels  them. 

3.  The  larger  divinity.  But  sincerity  is  only  one  ele- 
ment in  the  problem,  though  by  far  the  largest  element. 
Questions  must  be  answered  in  the  light  of  the  pupils' 
present  intellectual  and  moral  attainments.  There  is  a 
type  of  literalness  courted  by  some  which  would  rob  the 
world  of  all  mystery,  of  all  poetry  and  aesthetic  beauty. 
The  youth  needs  a  big  world  for  his  growing  mind, 
a  world  in  which  still  remain  unknown  and  unex- 
plored countries.  In  the  endeavor  to  be  honest  the 
teacher  needs  to  be  cautious  lest  he  strip  the  world  of 
all  its  glory,  leaving  only  a  dry  desert  place.  When  we 
have  found  that,  with  unchanging  regularity,  the  radiant 
sun  is  lifted  into  the  zenith,  we  need  to  remind  our  boys 
and  girls  of  the  subtler  Force  that  lies  back  of  such  regu- 
larity. If  we  have  discovered  possible  explanations  for 
what  have  appeared  to  be  unusual  and  marvelous  inter- 
pretations of  the  divine  will,  we  must  supplement  this  loss 
by  a  larger  faith  in  the  ever-present,  miracle-working  power 
of  an  orderly,  law-creating,  and  law-abiding  God.  Religion 
feeds  not  upon  ignorance  and  superstition  but,  rather,  upon 
the  sense  of  wonder  and  awe  which  produces  reverence. 
The  pupil's  questions,  then,  need  exact  not  only  the  honest 
answers  but  such  as  shall  disclose  a  still  more  marvelous 
and  more  divinely  directed  universe. 

4.  Thinking  out  answers.  It  is  far  better  to  let  pupils 
think  out  their  own  answers  than  to  give  dogmatic  replies 
to  their  inquiries.  The  whole  discussion  scheme  as  a  teach- 
ing method  enables  the  teacher  so  to  direct  thought  that 
the  pupils  shall  arrive  at  their  own  conclusions.  "Do  you 
think  so  and  so?"  asks  a  pupil.  "Well,  what  I  think  is  not 
so  important,"  responds  the  teacher,  "but  what  are  the 
facts?  Now  let  us  see."  Together  they  proceed  to  suggest 
several  lines  of  possible  thinking.  One  does  not  seem  rea- 
sonable. Another  seems  more  likely,  a  third  has  some 
merit.    "Perhaps  we  can  best  answer  our  own  question  by 


ADOLESCENT  DOUBTS  AND  QUESTIONS         223 

trying  it  out  in  our  lives,"  suggests  the  experienced  instruc- 
tor, or,  "I  have  found  from  my  own  experience  that  it 
seems  so  and  so,  but  you  will  have  to  try  it  out  too  and 
see  if  I  am  correct." 

For,  after  all,  the  answer  is  not  the  important  thing,  but 
the  direction  given  to  honest  thinking  and  to  consequent 
living.  And  an  equally  important  matter  is  the  continued 
sympathy  and  the  hearty  support  of  the  teacher  as  fur- 
ther investigation  is  made.  For  the  one  inexcusable 
answer  to  any  question  from  the  young,  no  matter  how 
shocking  or  unconventional  or  even  staggering  it  may 
sound,  is  the  raised  eyebrows,  the  look  of  unconcealed  as- 
tonishment, dismay,  or  arrogance  in  the  teacher's  face. 
For  then  and  there  he  has  lost  the  confidence  of  his  pupil, 
and  between  the  two  is  sure  to  come  a  gap  across  which 
neither  mind  will  be  able  to  travel  to  the  other.  And  it 
must  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  young  do  like  to  shock  their 
elders,  not  from  malice  but  out  of  a  determination  to  let  it 
be  known  that  they  are  now  old  enough  to  think  and  to 
act  independently. 

5.  The  unanswerable.  What  of  the  questions  that  the 
teacher  cannot  answer?  How  far  shall  he  reveal  his  insuf- 
ficiency? To  bluff  an  answer  may  seem  to  keep  professional 
respect.  But,  like  all  bluffing,  it  ends  in  the  pupil's  discov- 
ering the  insincerity,  whereupon  confidence  as  well  as 
respect  is  irretrievably  lost.  The  far  better  way  is  to 
admit  ignorance.  None  is  omniscient  save  One,  and  a  fool 
or  a  child  can  ask  questions  that  the  wisest  cannot  answer. 
Consequently,  we  shall  win  the  respect  and  hold  the  confi- 
dence of  our  pupils  best  by  admitting  that  we  do  not 
know  if  such  is  the  truth.  In  case  of  questions  dealing 
with  facts  teacher  and  pupils  together  may  search  out  the 
desired  answer.  In  questions  beyond  facts,  dealing  with 
theories  or  guesses,  the  teacher  is  always  to  stay  on  the 
sure  foundations  of  his  knowledge,  leaving  to  his  pupils  to 
determine  for  themselves  the  more  likely  solutions.  In 
matters  that  should  come  within  the  lesson  preparation  of 


224  LEADERS  OF  YOUTH 

the  teacher  ignorance,  of  course,  reveals  sloth  and  care- 
lessness and  is  not  accepted  by  self-respecting  pupils  in  lieu 
of  the  answers  that  they  have  a  right  to  expect. 

6.  Further  investigation.  Questions  requiring  more 
than  a  brief  period  of  the  lesson  hour  may  profitably  be 
postponed  to  a  midweek  evening,  when,  in  the  free  atmos- 
phere of  the  teacher's  or  the  pupil's  home,  time  shall  be 
found  for  threshing  out  these  problems.  For  it  must 
always  be  remembered  that,  however  well  settled  or  how- 
ever trivial  some  questions  may  appear  to  the  adult,  each 
generation  must  settle  them  afresh;  and  youth  is  ever  seek- 
ing the  sympathetic  and  understanding  mind  that  shall  help 
it  think  through  the  big  things  of  life. 

7.  Classification.  The  range  of  questions  is  so  great 
that  no  one  is  able  to  foresee  what  may  be  asked.  How- 
ever, a  certain  degree  of  classification  is  possible  even  in 
this  seeming  intellectual  chaos.  Theological  questions  deal- 
ing with  God,  the  divinity  of  Jesus,  the  Bible  and  its  com- 
position, the  devil,  sin,  and  salvation  are  all  attempts  of 
the  young  to  think  in  terms  of  current  religious  phrase- 
ology. Questions  dealing  with  practical  Christian  living 
are  closely  allied  to  these,  such  as:  "Why  should  a  person 
join  the  church?"  "Why  be  baptized?"  "Why  go  to  church?" 
"Why  keep  up  the  habits  of  prayer?"  "Does  prayer  really 
make  any  difference?"  "How  much  shall  I  give  the 
church?"  "What  may  a  Christian  do?"  "Why  may  not  a 
Christian  do  this  or  that?"  It  should  be  noted  that  the 
course  on  Christian  Living  is  intended  to  raise  some  of  these 
very  questions  and  to  help  the  pupils  in  their  settlement. 

Next  come  questions  of  a  philosophical  nature:  "Is  God 
the  Guide  of  all  the  world?"  "Why  does  he  permit  evil?" 
"What  about  miracles?"  "My  teacher  at  high  school  says 
so  and  so;  the  Bible  says  so  and  so.  What  am  I  to  believe?" 
Questions  of  this  sort  do  not  seriously  disturb  the  young 
until  the  senior  years;  but  when  they  come  they  are  vital 
and  must  be  fairly  met. 

Last  of  all,  and  by  far  the  greater  number,  come  those 


ADOLESCENT  DOUBTS  AND  QUESTIONS         225 

questions  of  plain  ethical  living:  "Why  is  it  wrong  to  do 
this?"  "So-and-so  does  that  and  he  is  a  pretty  good  man." 
"Is  it  wrong  to  dance?  to  play  cards?  to  go  to  the  theater? 
Why?"  These  and  other  similar  demands  will  be  made 
upon  every  teacher  of  youth  and  will  tax  the  patience  and 
the  mental  acumen  to  the  uttermost.  Dogmatic  assertions 
will  never  prevail.  Reasoning  must  be  made  plain  so  that 
those  less  gifted  may  follow  the  thought  to  the  conclusion. 
3.  The  best  answer.  Fortunately  the  best  answer  to 
many  of  these  hard  questions  is  the  life  of  the  teacher. 
His  own  example  is  worth  more  than  his  words,  for  he  is 
the  gospel  incarnate  to  his  class,  and  in  him  and  in  his 
way  of  life  they  find  the  solutions  most  fully  met.  Con- 
fidence in  him,  respect  for  his  integrity,  devotion  to  his 
never-failing  interest  in  them,  settle  many  problems  in  a 
way  that  words  can  never  do,  and  settle  them  aright. 
While  no  teacher  can  afford  to  intrench  himself  behind 
his  character  and  refuse  to  answer  honest  doubts,  he 
can  have  the  satisfaction  that  a  bigger  answer  is  being 
worked  out  in  his  life  with  the  young  than  in  the  brief 
and  only  partial  discussions  of  the  class.  Again,  let  it  be 
related  that  this  is  an  added  reason  or,  rather,  the  same 
reason  reiterated  for  his  throwing  himself  into  the  lives 
of  his  class,  for  living  with  them  in  their  sports,  their  rec- 
reations and  amusements,  as  well  as  in  the  brief  hour  of 
instruction.  To  find  in  him  the  spirit  of  the  Master  is  to 
discover  the  Master  himself.  To  discover  the  Master  is  to 
make  the  Master  their  own.  To  make  the  Master  their  own 
is  to  settle  many  of  the  gravest  questions. 

Questions 

1.  Why  does  the  adolescent  boy  or  girl  seem  to  be  skep- 
tical? 

2.  May  one  ignore  the  questionings  of  youth? 

3.  Do  the  young  want  final  answers  to  their  questions  or 
sympathetic  understanding?  What  reasons  can  you  give  for 
your  answer? 


226  LEADERS  OF  YOUTH 

4.  Suppose  a  teacher  cannot  answer  a  question,  what 
then? 

5.  What  are  some  of  the  common  types  of  questions 
asked? 

6.  How  may  the  teacher's  personality  become  the  best 
answer  to  many  questions? 

Observation 

Recall  your  own  youth.  To  what  questions  did  you  wish 
answers?  Upon  what  questions  are  your  pupils  seeking 
light?  If  they  ask  no  questions,  what  then?  Place  a  box 
in  the  room  for  unsigned  questions  to  see  what  two  or 
three  weeks  will  produce. 


CHAPTER  XXIII 
HELPING  PUPILS   DECIDE  THEIR  FUTURE 

He  was  a  tall  lad  who  had  enjoyed  no  educational  ad- 
vantages aside  from  a  good  mother,  who  had  bequeathed  to 
him  not  only  such  meager  instruction  as  she  was  able 
before  her  early  death  but  a  studious  mind  as  well.  Born 
of  an  English  family,  he  had  suffered  not  only  from  eco- 
nomic necessity,  which  compelled  him  to  contribute  to  the 
family  upkeep,  but  from  that  English  tradition  which  asso- 
ciates free  schools  with  "beggar  schools"  and  with  too  inti- 
mate association  with  all  kinds  of  boys  and  girls.  In  conse- 
quence, he  was  approaching  manhood  with  no  idea  of  ex- 
tending his  education  beyond  what  his  own  endeavors  in 
odd  hours  might  bring  and  with  no  thought  of  possible 
service  in  the  kingdom  of  his  Master  other  than  that  of  a 
faithful  Christian  layman. 

His  Sunday-school  teacher  was  a  mechanic,  a  humble 
layman,  but  with  unbounded  confidence  in  boys  and  with  an 
eye  ever  open  to  their  future.  One  day  he  asked  this 
lad  why  he  did  not  go  to  school,  go  on  to  college,  and 
become  a  minister.  The  thought  lay  like  fruitful  seed 
in  good  ground.  But  how  could  it  be  done?  Perhaps  none 
had  any  poorer  conception  of  education  in  this  land  of 
unparalleled  opportunities  than  had  this  son  of  a  worthy 
English  immigrant.  Then  the  resources  of  the  teacher 
were  called  into  play.  Advice  and  suggestion  were  given, 
help  was  extended,  and  to-day  a  minister  of  the  gospel  is 
faithfully  serving  his  flock  in  a  Methodist  church,  because 
his  Sunday-school  teacher  saw  the  possibilities  that  lay 
in  the  lad.     He  saw  and  he  spoke. 

1.  The  teacher's  opportunity.  The  plea  of  this  chap- 
ter is  not  to  make  ministers  out  of  all  boys  but  to  watch 

227 


228  LEADERS  OF  YOUTH 

the  developing  process  of  these  pupils  so  as  to  be  ready- 
to  give  encouragement  and  advice,  to  stimulate  worthy 
ambition,  and  to  help  these  young  people  get  right  adjust- 
ments in  life  at  the  earliest  moment.  These  are  the  years 
when  high  school  is  finished,  and  when  many,  leaving 
school,  turn  to  business  life  looking  for  a  place  in  which 
they  may  earn  a  livelihood  and  fulfill  their  destiny  in  this 
world.  In  most  of  our  communities  vocational  guidance  is 
unknown.  Only  in  a  few  of  our  largest  cities  is  anything 
being  done  to  inform  boys  and  girls  concerning  what  oppor- 
tunities are  open  to  them.  By  merest  accident  our  youth 
drift  into  this  or  that  position,  blind-alley  jobs  of  one  sort 
or  another,  or  into  places  into  which  their  lives  fit.  That 
so  many  "land  on  their  feet"  is  only  due  to  the  fluidity 
of  our  society  and  to  the  old  pioneering  instinct  that  has 
made  Americans  adapt  themselves  to  any  situation  and  to 
adjust  their  lives  as  opportunity  knocks  at  the  door.  But, 
year  by  year,  as  population  increases,  and  our  economic 
life  becomes  more  and  more  fixed,  the  less  will  it  be  true 
that  a  boy  or  a  girl  can,  as  by  accident,  tumble  into  some 
desirable  livelihood.  Let  it  not  be  thought  that  the  amount 
to  be  earned  is  the  consideration  that  is  uppermost  in  our 
thinking.  What  is  being  stressed  is  that  many  of  our 
pupils  find  themselves  placed  in  positions  for  which  they 
are  ill  fitted;  some,  no  doubt,  awaken  too  late  to  get  the 
preparation  necessary  for  the  life  calling  that  they  believe 
might  have  been  theirs  had  the  wisdom  and  kindliness  of 
some  friend  in  times  past  pointed  the  way.  What  is  urged 
is  that  the  Sunday  school  has  a  task  as  yet  little  appreciated 
in  placing  its  pupils  in  such  paths  of  usefulness  as  shall 
enrich  themselves  and  the  world. 

2.  Furtliering  educational  ambitions.  How  many  of 
the  seniors  are  to  go  on  with  their  education?  What  is  the 
teacher  doing  to  see  that  every  one  in  the  class  who  has 
any  aptitude  shall  have  an  opportunity  for  further  and 
better  preparation?  While  this  is  primarily  a  problem  of 
the  home,  or  has  so  been  considered,  the  Sunday  school 


HELPING  PUPILS   DECIDE  THEIR  FUTURE     229 

must  bear  its  share  of  blame  if  eager,  plastic  minds  are 
robbed  of  their  privileges.  For,  in  most  cases,  going  to 
college  depends  on  an  attitude  of  mind  established  back  in 
the  intermediate  and  senior  years. 

How  well  one  recalls  the  first  hint  of  college  life,  brought 
through  an  attractive  catalogue  or,  more  likely,  through  the 
return  of  some  one  who  had  "just  come  back  from  college"! 
How  wonderful  it  all  seemed,  and  how  impossible  for  us! 
Could  one  go?  And  what  about  entrance  examination  and 
costs?  And  where,  to  which  college,  shall  one  go?  These 
and  other  similar  questions  called  for  discussion  and  for 
sympathetic  and  understanding  friendship. 

When  the  teacher  of  intermediates  and  seniors  under- 
stands that  the  leadership  of  our  land,  as  proved  by  most 
careful  statistics,  is  lodged  in  the  hands  of  college  students 
and  graduates,  when  he  realizes  that,  more  and  more,  the 
lack  of  college  preparation  closes  the  door  sharply  in  the 
faces  of  the  young,  and  when  he  has  discovered  that  the 
larger  satisfactions  of  life  are  found  in  the  trained  mind 
and  the  widened  outlook  developed  in  the  atmosphere  of  the 
college,  he  will  be  only  too  eager  to  aid  in  every  way  every 
pupil  of  his  toward  this  desirable  goal.  He  will  talk  about 
college  life  and  inspire  his  pupils  with  the  college  idea.  He 
will  send  for  catalogues  and,  over  their  pages,  he  will  stir  up 
interest  in  college  ideas  and  ideals.  He  will  invite  from 
time  to  time  returned  college  students  to  tell  his  class  what 
college  means  to  them  and  how  much  it  costs  and  what  one 
must  do  to  get  in.  And  he  will  be  ready  to  supplement  the 
enthusiasms  of  youth  by  his  own  judgment  and  influence 
in  the  home.  He  will  recall  many  a  boy  or  girl  who  "put 
himself  or  herself  through  college."  Perhaps  he  will  see 
that  the  needed  loan  is  obtained  to  make  the  initial  start 
and,  if  the  student  proves  worthy,  will  aid  in  securing  fur- 
ther loans.  Even  though  these  pupils,  as  they  go  on  to 
college,  pass  beyond  the  bounds  of  his  class  life  they  will 
never  be  allowed  to  pass  beyond  his  affection  and  interest. 
He  will  find  time  to  write  to  these  college  men  and  women. 


230  LEADERS  OF  YOUTH 

keeping  in  touch  with  their  development  and  thus  tying 
them  more  strongly  to  the  home  church;  and  upon  their 
return  they  will  know  that  they  have  one  friend  in  the 
Sunday  school  who  believes  in  them  and  who  expects  great 
things  of  them. 

3.  Industrial  placing.  The  course  entitled  The  World 
a  Field  for  Christian  Service  has  called  attention  to  the 
varied  activities  of  life  and  the  possibilities  of  finest 
Christian  service  in  each.  This  is  in  the  nature  of  voca- 
tional guidance,  though  indirectly  so.  The  great  majority 
of  the  pupils  do  not  go  to  college  and  will  not  for  many 
years  to  come;  so  that  the  leader  of  youth  has  a  task  before 
him  to  aid  those  who  in  the  grades  plunge  out  of  school 
or  from  high  school  straight  into  business  life.  If  he  is 
the  kind  of  teacher  he  should  be,  he  will  not  rest  content 
to  let  things  take  their  course.  Ever  on  the  lookout  for 
the  welfare  of  his  charges,  he  will  watch  most  anxiously 
to  see  how  these  early  adventures  into  commerce  get  on. 
Here  is  a  boy  who  is  attempting  to  secure  the  means  of 
existence  in  some  blind-alley  employment — delivering  tele- 
grams, peddling  newspapers,  acting  as  messenger  to  a  large 
banking  corporation.  Such  a  leader  will  not  rest  content 
until  he  sees  that  the  boy  is  placed  in  some  position  where 
he  can  go  on  to  something  better  as  experience  and  knowl- 
edge pave  the  way.  He  will  encourage  him  to  attend  night 
school,  or,  if  none  is  available,  he  will  himself  aid  the 
pupil  or  engage  some  one  more  qualified,  thus  getting  him 
to  continue  his  studies  and  fit  himself  for  later  advance- 
ment. 

Again,  the  leader  will  watch  with  all  the  solicitude  of  a 
parent,  with  unusual  eagerness,  the  placing  of  the  girls  in 
industry,  lest  they  drop  into  an  office  or  a  factory  where 
temptations  to  careless  or  even  vicious  living  shall  prove 
too  strong.  As  with  the  boys  every  encouragement  will 
be  offered  to  further  the  preparation  for  life's  tasks. 

There  are  many  misplaced  workers  in  our  industries 
who  lose  out  not  because  of  lack  of  native  ability  but  be- 


HELPING  PUPILS  DECIDE  THEIR  FUTURE     231 

cause  the  kind  of  work  offered  is  not  suited  to  the  tem- 
perament or  the  capacity  of  those  employed.  The  teacher 
will  keep  in  close  touch  with  his  pupils  to  see  how  they 
are  getting  on,  suggesting  such  changes  as  seem  better  to 
meet  the  nature  of  the  individual.  For  the  chances  of  those 
already  in  business  to  further  the  plans  of  the  young,  to 
recommend  capable  workers  to  worthy  employers,  are  much 
greater  than  is  frequently  supposed.  And  to  utilize  the 
chances  of  doing  good  is  all  that  is  urged  upon  the  con- 
sciences of  the  leaders  of  youth. 

4.  Guiding  youth.  Is  it  not  possible  to  add  to  the 
efficiency  of  the  course  noted  above  by  advising  individ- 
uals as  to  their  future?  Perhaps  it  is  not  college  nor 
an  immediate  job  that  is  sought.  Special  training  in 
some  technical  line — a  trade  of  some  sort — that  is  the  am- 
bition. Here  the  demand  for  wise  guidance  and  for  sym- 
pathy is  the  same  as  for  those  aiming  at  college.  If  the 
trade  school  cannot  be  entered,  various  correspondence 
courses  open  the  way  to  training  in  many  lines.  Such 
courses  are  lonely,  especially  if  no  friendly  person  is  near 
to  encourage  one  from  time  to  time.  Help  the  young  to  get 
ready  to  fit  into  some  place  in  the  world  where  they  will  be 
happy  in  the  kind  of  service  they  are  to  render. 

For  this  matter  of  adjusting  the  young  to  their  lifework, 
helping  them  to  make  their  plans,  is  not  just  a  mercenary 
matter;  it  is  a  part  of  our  growing  concept  of  religion. 
"To  serve  the  present  age,  my  calling  to  fulfill"  means, 
among  other  things,  to  find  the  place  where  I  can  best 
serve  it.  Surely  no  one  can  render  the  best  service  in  a 
position  or  at  a  task  in  a  profession  in  which  every  day  is 
a  struggle  against  natural  interests  and  attitudes,  nor  in 
a  position  for  which  one  has  had  no  preparation,  nor  in 
one  which  is  dead  because  there  is  no  future.  It  is  not 
the  money  that  counts  here  but  the  opportunity  to  fit  our 
pupils  into  life  plans  that  shall  develop  their  own  char- 
acters and  shall  help  the  coming  of  the  Kingdom. 

The  fruition  of  all  undertakings  for  the  guidance  of  the 


232  LEADERS  OF  YOUTH 

pupils  in  their  life  plans  cannot  be  observed  nor  enjoyed 
except  in  later  years.  All  such  effort  is  building  for  the 
future,  and  only  the  future  can  render  satisfaction  for  all 
one's  pains.  Hence,  the  tendency  will  be  and  has  ever  been 
to  take  the  easier  route,  to  let  each  pupil  alone  to  work  out 
his  own  plans,  and  to  be  satisfied  to  "teach  the  lesson  each 
Sabbath."  But  let  no  worker  be  discouraged.  The  Master 
wrought  with  an  eye  upon  the  distant  centuries.  Can  we 
not  work  with  faith  in  the  coming  generation  sufficient  to 
put  forth  our  sincerest  efforts?  A  dozen  years  from  now 
some  man  or  woman  may  look  at  you  and  say:  "Yours 
was  the  hand  that  directed  the  way,  yours  was  the  faith 
in  me  that  kept  me  from  giving  up.  I  thank  you  for 
what  I  am."  And  if  it  is  never  said,  you  may,  like  Paul 
of  old,  find  your  epistles  written  in  human  lives. 

Questions 

1.  How  may  a  teacher  help  his  pupils  to  decide  to  go  to 
college? 

2.  How  can  a  teacher  aid  his  pupils  to  secure  business 
positions  for  which  they  are  fitted? 

3.  When  a  pupil  is  in  business,  how  may  a  teacher  help 
liim  to  secure  additional  educational  advantages? 

4.  What  bearing  has  the  course  The  World  a  Field  for 
Christian  Service  upon  the  subject  of  this  chapter? 

5.  Is  the  end  of  all  such  help  by  the  teacher  a  better  job 
or  a  better  man?    Give  reasons  for  your  answer. 

Ohservatiox 

Confer  with  some  of  the  young  people  of  your  community 
and  try  to  determine  how  they  came  to  be  so  placed.  Did 
the  Sunday  school  have  anything  to  do  with  their  life 
choices?  Learn  also  from  those  who  went  to  college,  or 
from  their  parents,  why  they  went,  what  determined  their 
choice  among  the  colleges,  and  what  influence  the  Sunday 
school  had  upon  that  choice. 


CHAPTER  XXIV 
DEVELOPING  AND  TRAINING  LEADERSHIP 

Ix  an  earlier  chapter  of  this  book  tlie  question  was 
raised:  "Shall  we  not,  perhaps,  have  to  recast  our  scheme 
of  recreation  and  of  social  expression  and  even  our  plan  of 
organization  and  of  worship  so  as  to  incorporate  these 
pupils  more  completely  in  the  life  of  the  church?  Finding, 
as  we  do,  that  by  nature  boys  and  girls  are  ready  to  go 
forward  in  their  religious  development,  what  can  the  church 
do  to  help  them?" 

The  chapters  of  this  book  have  been  written  in  the 
hope  of  answering  these  questions.  To  some  the  sug- 
gestions of  an  organized,  self-directing  group  of  intermedi 
ates  and  seniors,  genuinely  controlling  both  in  plans  and 
in  execution  their  religious,  social,  recreational,  and  service 
activities,  may  have  seemed  radical  enough.  But  if  the 
church  shall  retain  its  youth,  developing  them  into  robust, 
aggressive,  self-directing  Christians,  loyal  to  the  Christian 
ideal  and  to  the  church  that  represents  that  ideal,  it  will 
have  to  adopt  such  measures  as  shall  be  certain  to  achieve 
that  end. 

A  glance  at  the  Master  Teacher  and  his  disciples  may 
help  us  to  see  this  more  clearly.  By  precept  and  by  example 
he  taught  his  band  of  disciples  for  three  years.  Daily  he 
gave  them  practice  in  the  art  of  Christian  living.  As  he 
was  doing  he  sent  them  forth  to  do  also — to  heal,  to  teach, 
to  preach.  Never  did  he  dominate  their  lives  except  as  his 
marvelous  personality  drew  them  to  his  will.  They  were 
free,  and  in  that  liberty  their  lives  were  shaped  more  and 
more  under  his  gracious  influence.  Then  he  left  them  to 
work  out  the  tremendous  plans  that  he  had  in  mind.    As  the 

233 


234  .     LEADERS  OF  YOUTH 

Kingdom  took  shape  in  them  and  worked  out  through  their 
influence  to  others,  so  has  the  Kingdom  wrought  itself 
in  this  world. 

What  the  Master  did  in  the  first  school  of  the  Christian 
religion  we  have  been  holding  as  the  ideal  in  the  Sunday- 
school  and  the  church  to-day.  In  our  own  persons  as 
officers  and  teachers  and  through  the  sympathetic  and  un- 
derstanding personalities  in  the  church  we  have  endeavored 
to  bring  the  intermediates  and  the  seniors  into  living  con- 
tact with  the  Christ  life.  We  say  it  reverently  and  with 
due  appreciation  of  how  poorly  that  Spirit  has  found  its 
exempli-fication  in  us.  Through  the  programs  of  worship 
we  have  encouraged  our  pupils  truly  to  worship,  to  catch 
the  Master's  fine  appreciation  of  the  nearness  and  the 
Fatherliness  of  God.  This  has  been  the  expression  of  their 
own  religious  natures,  not  the  imposition  of  our  plans  nor 
of  our  viewpoint  upon  them.  In  the  classes  we  have 
endeavored  to  get  them  to  think  through  the  great  and 
vital  problems  that  confront  them,  especially  as  these  prob- 
lems relate  to  their  obligations  to  God  and  to  their  fellow 
men.  We  have  not  tried  to  conform  their  minds  to  our 
adult  thinking  but  to  stimulate  in  them  the  desire  to  think 
and  to  live  from  the  Christian  viewpoint. 

Not  satisfied  to  let  ideas  and  ideals  stand  alone,  detached 
from  the  actual  process  of  living,  we  have  watched  with 
solicitous  care  and  have  guided  by  our  best  counsel  their 
immature  and  awkward  endeavors  to  fellowship,  to  love, 
to  help,  to  serve.  By  our  enthusiasm  we  have  encouraged 
every  evidence  of  Christian  cooperation  and  activity.  Nay, 
we  have  planned  deliberately  to  aid  them  to  achieve  social 
as  well  as  personal  righteousness.  This  has  been  accom- 
plished in  the  building  up  of  the  organization  of  the  de- 
partment, on  the  playground,  at  social  gatherings,  on  hikes, 
in  camp,  and  wherever  social  living  has  taken  place;  always 
coming  short  of  commanding,  always  standing  back  as  an 
elder  brother  or  sister.  Not  content  to  let  these  things 
come  by  accident,  we  have  encouraged  definite  programs 


DEVELOPING  AND  TRAINING  LEADERSHIP     235 

of  recreation,  of  service,  definite  methods  of  conducting 
the  Kingdom. 

Believing  that  the  only  thoroughgoing  development  of 
personality  comes  through  the  largest  measure  of  social 
living,  that  religion  is  acquired,  and  character  developed, 
not  in  idle  speculation  but  in  the  actual  experiences  of 
social-religious  activities,  the  church,  through  its  educa- 
tional system,  has  set  itself  the  task  of  incorporating  its 
young  life  into  its  complex  social  organization.  The  wor- 
ship of  the  church  has  been  projected  down  into  the  world 
of  the  intermediate-senior^.  The  missionary  activities  at 
home  and  abroad,  in  the  community  and  to  the  farthest 
reaches  of  the  world,  have  been  shared  with  these  boys  and 
girls.  The  church  has  taken  stock  of  the  play  life  of  youth 
and  has  shared  their  enthusiasm  as  they  have  built  up  their 
recreational  programs.  The  Intermediate-Senior  Depart- 
ment is  one  section  of  the  church  functioning  fully,  freely, 
and  efficiently.  If,  in  the  long  run,  this  should  mean  the 
readjustment  of  our  present  church  programs  and  organ- 
ization looking  toward  the  fullest  organic  joining  of  church 
and  Sunday  school  as  it  becomes  evident  that  these  boys 
and  girls  are  truly  the  church — one  section,  to  be  sure — 
living  out  its  own  experience  and  growing  into  an  enlarg- 
ing life,  then  such  readjustments  and  reorganization  will 
naturally  follow.  When  the  time  has  arrived,  and  our  eyes 
are  opened,  we  shall  welcome  the  change  in  the  name  of  a 
better  and  fuller  Christian  experience. 

Every  self-directing  person  actuated  by  the  spirit  of 
Christ  is  an  additional  asset  to  the  present  capital  of  the 
Christian  world.  The  church  and  Christianity  at  large  are 
languishing  for  the  lack  of  such  leadership,  of  men  and 
women  who,  having  clearly  seen  the  purposes  of  Christ  and 
being  possessed  of  his  spirit,  are  willing  to  spend  and  be 
spent  in  his  service.  Such  persons  are  the  salt  of  the  earth, 
the  light  of  the  world.  Instead  of  supine  followers,  mere 
hangers-on,  conventionalized  and  stereotyped  church  mem- 
bers, the  plans  above  discussed  aim  to  develop  those  who 


236      •  LEADERS  OF  YOUTH 

are  to  grow  with  their  advancing  years  in  Christian  expe- 
rience. Having  put  their  own  ideals  to  the  test  of  life, 
having  become  efficient  in  Christian  living  and  in  the  pro- 
motion of  the  Kingdom,  and  discovering  the  great  work  to 
be  done  before  this  world  becomes  the  kingdom  of  our  Lord 
and  of  his  Christ,  they  will  have  consecrated  their  all  to  the 
accomplishment  of  the  Christian's  task.  This  is  the  leader- 
ship that  is  hoped  to  be  developed  for  the  church.  Not 
officeholders  is  the  end  but  the  creation  of  that  leader- 
ship that  made  the  early  church  felt  in  the  life  of  that 
far-off  day. 

While  all  know  that  native  differences  in  ability  to  lead 
exist,  every  worker  with  these  young  people  must  act 
upon  the  principle  that  none  is  totally  incapable.  To  dis- 
cover leadership,  to  find  in  some  bashful,  retiring  boy  or 
girl  the  ability  to  originate  plans,  to  get  things  done,  is  a 
joy  forbidden  those  who  thrust  the  more  forward  into  every 
place  of  responsibility.  Not  infrequently  it  is  found  that 
the  burden  of  activities  of  a  department  has  gravitated  to  a 
select  few.  "John  and  Marjory  do  everything  so  well"  is  the 
explanation  given.  This  not  only  focuses  too  much  atten- 
tion for  their  own  good  upon  John  and  Marjory;  it  denies 
to  others  the  possibility  of  ever  getting  training  in  leader- 
ship. For  leadership  depends  for  its  development  on  expe- 
rience in  leading.  How  can  such  experience  be  gained  if 
John  and  Marjory  monopolize  the  chances?  If  the  plans 
for  developing  Christian  leadership  shall  succeed,  then  it 
is  necessary  that  in  the  different  activities  of  department  or 
of  class  different  members  be  tried  out. 

Failure  on  the  part  of  the  young  sometimes  seems  to 
ensue  when,  in  reality,  the  difficulty  lies  with  us  who 
teach  or  guide.  We  do  not  give  the  necessary  support.  The 
sympathetic  advice  and  direction  of  the  teacher  may  sur- 
mount such  failures.  That  first  timidity  may  disappear 
after  a  number  of  tests,  and  the  "I  can't"  will  gladly  be 
replaced  with  "Well,  I'll  try  if  you  think  I  can."  The 
easiest  route  for  all  of  us  is  to  utilize  the  tested  talent, 


DEVELOPING  AND  TRAINING  LEADERSHIP     237 

but  this  is  not  the  wisest  nor  the  best  if  we  would  keep 
clearly  in  mind  our  goal.  Everyone  wants  to  become  a 
leader,  and  none  should  be  denied  repeated  trials  at  this 
difficult  task. 

Talents  differ,  as  has  been  said,  and  a  source  of  failure 
to  create  real  leadership  has  not  infrequently  been  that 
selection  has  been  made  on  the  basis  of  one  single  talent. 
One  may  be  a  leader  and  yet  not  be  able  to  lead  in  every 
direction  or  at  every  task,  Mr.  Edison  is  undoubtedly  the 
leader  in  his  own  field;  how  he  would  act  had  he  to  lead  an 
army  or  to  direct  a  university,  no  one  knows,  for  he  has 
never  been  called  upon  to  do  either.  All  pastors  do  not 
make  equally  good  college  presidents,  nor  all  business  engi- 
neers good  generals. 

In  religious  work  the  standard  by  which  we  gauge  leader- 
ship has  been  most  often  glibness  of  tongue.  If  one  can 
stand  before  a  meeting  and  talk  well,  that  person  has  been 
looked  upon  as  a  leader.  We  have  fallen  into  the  habit 
of  speaking  of  "leaders  of  the  Epworth  League"  just  on  this 
ground.  None  should  be  denied  the  opportunity  for  such 
leadership.  In  fact,  the  conduct  of  worship,  presiding  at 
meetings,  and  taking  part  in  discussion  should  discover 
those  apt  in  this  art  and  train  others  less  experienced. 
But  the  work  of  our  lives  is  not  altogether  determined  by 
how  well  one  can  speak;  other  kinds  of  ability  are  needed 
quite  as  much  in  this  busy  world.  This  boy  who  has  no 
special  gift  of  utterance  can  arrange  a  party,  plan  an 
entertainment  from  start  to  finish,  and  make  each  who 
attends  feel  that  he  has  had  a  good  time.  Such  leader- 
ship in  our  social  living  is  quite  as  important  as  is  public 
speaking.  Another,  who  can  do  neither  of  these  things, 
can  plan  an  athletic  contest,  a  field  day,  a  hike,  a  camping 
trip,  and  can  engineer  the  venture  from  start,  to  finish. 
Surely,  such  a  discovery  is  worth  making.  Here  is  a  girl, 
a  demure  little  mouse,  who  never  shows  off  in  public,  yet 
who  knows  how  to  get  the  girls  to  fill  a  basket  and  how 
to  make  the  recipients  of  the  gift  glad  that  she  and  not 


238  LEADERS  OF  YOUTH 

• 

another  has  brought  it.  It  may  be  that  the  boy  or  the  girl 
who  can  do  none  of  these  things  is  proud  to  care  for  the 
statistics  of  the  department,  to  make  the  posters,  or  to 
keep  up  the  correspondence  with  absentees,  and  is  quite 
delighted  to  have  these  powers  of  organization  and  of  secre- 
tarial ability  utilized. 

The  end  of  it  all,  as  we  have  seen,  is  to  develop  skill  in 
Christian  living  in  a  world  that  is  looking  to  these  young 
people  to  bring  the  Christian  ideals  to  pass.  The  means 
at  hand  are  the  native  capacities  of  the  boys  and  girls 
plus  the  training  that  the  church  through  its  self-organized 
groups  can  give  in  the  practice  of  Christian  doing.  Contact 
with  adults  who  already  know  the  Christian  life  and  are 
exemplifying  it  is  the  greatest  educational  force.  The 
Bible,  a  Book  of  men  and  of  women  who  lived  and  walked 
with  God,  is  the  inspiration  to  larger  experience  as  well  as 
the  Sourcebook  of  knowledge  of  what  the  Christlike  life 
may  become.  Others  who,  since  Bible  times,  have  lived  with 
and  known  God  serve  to  enlighten  these  inexperienced 
youths  as  to  the  possibilities  of  Christian  faith  and  prac- 
tice. Daily  putting  these  ideals  into  practice  brings  not 
only  certainty  to  their  thinking  but  confidence  in  their 
living.  Loyalty  to  the  class  and  to  the  department  enlarges 
through  cooperation  with  the  larger  group  into  loyalty  to 
the  church.  Community  and  missionary  activity  develops 
world  fellowship  and  the  determination  to  share  the  good 
news  with  those  less  favored;  and  practical  service  brings 
such  sharing  out  of  the  cloudland  of  the  imagination  and 
the  emotions  into  the  world  of  actual  Christian  fellow- 
ship. 

Can  one  follow  the  plan  laid  down  without  being  im- 
pressed that  from  start  to  finish  the  project  has  been  to 
develop  and  train  efficient  Christians — Christians  who  are 
self-directing,  have  initiative,  and,  with  the  courage  of  their 
convictions,  are  determined  to  make  this  world  what  Jesus 
would  have  it  be?  That  is  the  end,  and  the  end  is  nothing 
less  than  the  creation  of  such  leadership  as  sent  the  apostles 


DEVELOPING  AND  TRAINING  LEADERSHIP     239 

and  their  friends  out  upon  the  conquest  of  the  kingdoms 
of  the  world. 

Questions 

1.  Why  is  training  in  self-direction  essential  to  the  pro- 
duction of  Christian  character? 

2.  How  does  the  intermediate-senior  program  furnish 
opportunity  to  become  skillful  in  self-direction? 

3.  What,  in  addition  to  right  ideals,  is  needed  by  our 
pupils? 

4.  How  do  the  personalities  of  teachers  and  other  adult 
leaders  aid  in  Christian  education? 

5.  How  does  intermediate-senior  organization,  with  its 
programs  of  recreation,  service,  and  worship,  tend  to  de- 
velop leadership? 

6.  Why  should  each  member  of  the  department  have  a 
chance  at  leadership? 

7.  How  may  failure  to  develop  leadership  be  avoided? 

Review 

Go  back  over  the  chapters,  thumbing  slowly  the  pages, 
and  ask  yourself,  "How  does  this  chapter  help  me  to  train 
the  young  in  leadership?"  The  end  of  all  our  work  is  a 
self-directed.  Christlike  personality  engaged  in  building  the 
kingdom  of  the  Master.  Ask  again,  "How  does  this  chapter 
help  me  to  be  more  efficient  in  training  the  youths  to  this 
divine  accomplishment?" 


BIBLIOGRAPHY 

The  Spirit  of  Youth  and  the  City  Streets.  Addams. 

The  Sunday  School  and  the  Teens,  Alexander. 

The  Church  School,  Athearn. 

Graded  Missionary  Instruction  in  the  Su7iday  School, 
Beard. 

Missionary  Education  in  Home  and  School,  Diffendorfer. 

Leaders  of  Girls,  Espey. 

Boy  Life  and  Self -Government,  Fiske. 

The  Boy  Problem,  Forbush. 

The  Coniing  Generation,  Forbush. 

Boyology,  Gibson. 

Youth,  Hall. 

From  Youth  to  Manhood,  Hall,  W.  S. 

Worship  in  the  Sunday  School,  Hartshorne. 

Manual  of  Worship  for  the  Sunday  School,  Hartshorne. 

The  High-School  Age,  King. 

Youth  and  the  Church,  Maus. 

Girlhood  and  Character,  Moxcey. 

Leadership  of  Girls'  Activities,  Moxcey. 

The  Boy  Scout  Movement  and  the  Church,  Richardson 
and  Loomis. 

The  Girl  in  Her  Teens,  Slattery. 

The  Girl  and  Her  Religion,  Slattery. 

Handbook  for  Workers  With  Young  People,  Thompson. 


240 


Date  Due 

4.:      ! 

-    '::7  "^ 

"  '      'VK 

¥ 

i 

^ 

